For the past ten years or so, the level of bottled water sales has been steadily rising by 7 – 8% per annum. The level of consumption globally is estimated to have more than doubled between 1997 and 2005.

Approximately 200 billion bottles of water are consumed worldwide per annum. The US market is the largest by far, making up 25% of total sales.

However, there has been a backlash against the use of bottled water. One of the main concerns is the environmental impact of bottled water. The bottles themselves are typically made from Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is a recyclable material – but the actual level of recycling is thought to be less than 25%.

The energy used for production, transportation and disposal of the bottles is also a cause for concern among environmentalists. When compared with tap water, bottled water creates carbon emissions which are 5,000 times larger per litre.

In spite of the extremely effective marketing of the bottled water suppliers, there seems to be no evidence that bottled water is, in developed countries at least, any better for your health than plain old tap water. Some bottled waters have been found to contain estrogenic chemicals and even uranium. Most bottled waters have some level of salt present – which is bad for your blood pressure.

In terms of taste there is little firm evidence that bottled water is superior to tap water. In a blind tasting in the UK, London tap water came in third place out of a selection of 24 different water varieties. In the USA, a 2007 episode of Penn and Teller (which might have been more entertaining than scientific – but still merits a mention) showed that diners could not distinguish between bottled water and water drawn from a garden hose.

In terms of cost to the end user the exact ratio will vary according to the brand of water under consideration, but generally speaking bottled water costs several hundred times more per litre than tap water.

So, considering environmental impact, health, taste and cost, bottled water really doesn’t have a lot going for it. If you really don’t like the taste of the water supplied from your tap then you might be well advised to look at some type of home filtration system. The cost will be higher than tap water, but much less than bottled water. If you go for a solution such as the Brita water filter jug then you can be certain that it’s better for the environment as all parts of the filters are recyclable.

Of course, home filtration systems are great for when you’re at home – but if you like to carry water with you when you’re out and about then you could use and reuse a bottle which you fill at home, or the office, before you leave. Again, Brita water are a fine example having teamed up with international designer Orla Kelly to produce the Wottle – which claims to be the world’s first designer reusable bottle and is made from 100% recycled material. Or you could just do a bit of recycling of your own and use an old soda bottle.