USA – San Francisco mayor bans municipal purchase of plastic water bottles

San Francisco Mayor Newsom issues executive directive to permanently phase-out the purchase of bottled water by the city and county of San Francisco.



Over the last decade, San Franciscans have responded to marketing campaigns to purchase bottled water and record amounts of bottled water have been purchased by San Francisco consumers and local government at the expense of the environment. Such marketing has suggested that bottled water is safer than better-regulated, pristine tap water delivered by San Francisco government to its residents.



As the city advances its Local Climate Action Plan to combat global warming, it is paramount that we initiate policies that limit the most significant contributors to climate change. The rise of the bottled water industry is well documented and visible throughout San Francisco and the entire world.



The global consumption of bottled water was measured at 41 billion gallons in 2004, up 57 percent from the previous five years. This consumption increase occurred despite the fact that bottled water often costs 240 to 10,000 times more than tap water. In San Francisco, for the price of one gallon of bottled water, local residents can purchase 1000 gallons of tap water.



Data suggest that the environmental impact of the bottled water industry has been profound. According to the Container Recycling Institute, supplying the plastic water bottles that American consumers purchase in one year requires more than 47 million gallons of oil, the equivalent of one billion pounds of carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere. More than one billion plastic water bottles end up in California‘‘s landfills each year, taking 1000 years to biodegrade and leaking toxic additives such as phthalates into the groundwater and, dditionally, water diverted from local aquifers for the bottled water industry can strain surrounding ecosystems.



Furthermore, transporting bottled water by boat, truck and train involves burning massive quantities of fossil fuels. All of this waste and pollution is generated by a product that by objective standards is often inferior to the quality of San Francisco‘‘s pristine tap water.



The mayor‘‘s Executive Directive to become effective immediately:





beginning July 1, 2007, there will be a prohibition from any city department or agency purchasing single serving bottles of water using city funds, unless an employee contract specifies usage. This prohibition will apply to city contractors and city funded and/or sponsored events. There will be no waivers from this prohibition.

by September 30, 2007, all city departments and agencies occupying either city or rental properties will have completed an audit to determine the viability of switching from bottled water dispensers to bottle-less water dispensers that utilize Hetch Hetchy supplied water. City departments will work with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), Department of Real Estate (DRE) and the City Purchaser to conduct the audit. Staff from the SFPUC will contact you shortly to begin the audit for your department.

by December 1, 2007 all city departments and agencies occupying either city or rental properties will have installed bottle-less water dispensers that utilize Hetch Hetchy supplied water. Waivers will only be granted by the SFPUC based on legitimate engineering, health and fiscal concerns.

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