The smug greenies have done it to themselves again. Many folks are back to opting for tap water, or filtered tap water, because of the nasty environmental effects of producing and shipping bottled waters and the cleanup of the bottles themselves.
An increasing number of restaurants are offering only filtered tap water to customers these days. Mario Batali (from TV fame) stopped selling bottled water at his New York City restaurants in 2009, and eateries in Florida and Massachusetts are also serving only tap.
New York is the 11th state to require a bottled-water deposit, and the list is expected to grow. Americans last year threw away an estimated 2.5 million bottles an hour, according to data provided by the Clean Air Council.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors voted in June, 2009 to recommend that City Halls stop serving bottled water even at special functions. I always said bottled water was the pet rock of the decade, now it looks like some folks are beginning to agree with me.