Hi there. We were on vacation for 2 weeks but back now. Don't worry, I have many posts regarding the trip and other things I thought about while on the trip in the works, but in the meantime here's a quick survey for you. This is from my friend who's a Civil Engineering professor in the middle east, with a special interest in water (supply, treatment, etc.)Here's what he says:
Now that I live in a place where water is so scarce, I’m doing some preliminary research on people’s perception of water quality, and how that impacts the amount of water they use. One specific area of interest is in whether (and why) people prefer bottled water vs. tap water. If you have a few moments, I’d appreciate it if you could complete the survey. Here it is.
It takes about 7 minutes and there are no trick questions. He's trying to get a wide range of respondents so pass it along.
6 comments:
Well I have to say that I really don't notice a big difference between tap water and bottled water here in Colorado Springs. So I would have to say I prefer tap water since it taste the same and is free. I also read this about our water "hooray"! for Colorado Springs.
- During a nationwide taste test at the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ 75th Annual Meeting, the country’s mayors placed Colorado Springs Utilities’ water among the best tasting water in the United States. Colorado Springs was among the top five finalists, with St. Louis winning the top prize. A total of 93 cities competed in the contest.
- http://www.csu.org/search/nph-seek/cs.html?url=http%3A//www.csu.org/about/news/news/page14621.html&qt=tasting+water&col=internet&n=1
Thanks for the publicity, you rule!
The prejudice against tap water over here (UAE) is really amazing: most people would NEVER DREAM of drinking it, even though it's perfectly healthy. The reasons people cite are so ill-informed it's almost funny.
(To be more understanding, though, I suppose a lot of people living here are originally from places where you wouldn't want to drink the water.)
As a result of the local contempt for tap water, I believe that many people feel free to waste it. (And since the desalinated water here is about 10x more expensive to produce than the fresh surface water & groundwater typically used in the USA, it's surprising to see people spraying the dust off their driveways on a daily basis. I'm always, like, "Get a broom, lazy!" (In my mind, anyway.))
The government provides some pretty hefty subsidies for water in this country, so the whole issue of the public's perception of water quality, the staggering waste, and the cost / sustainability of it all is pretty interesting, in a nerdy sort of way.
Many thanks to everyone who takes the survey!
Considering the crippling droughts we have had in TN this year, I have been much more aware of my water consumption. We are in the process of getting serious about food storage and water is one of the first things we are going to store.
I believe in the quality of tap water but not in the old pipes it has to travel through. But I still drink tap. Bottled water just makes too much pollution with its plastic packaging.
We've been in a serious drought in VA too. I've started taking Navy showers and I'm starting to really like them.
Katy- I'm with you. Our water in East Middlebury is fantastic- we have our own resevoir... but the pipes are old. Here at our house, we had our iron water main replaced last year with a shiny new copper one. I'll tell ya, looking at that corroded pipe nearly made me sick. And I was pregnant at the time, so of course I worried about what I had been ingesting.
Out of all the places we've lived where you could drink the water, I think Cleveland has to be the worst-tasting. Living in CA taught us to watch our usage. I'm afraid we're a little bit spoiled here with both taste and availabilty. I remember being amazed at how the rich Egyptians had their workers wash the cars every single morning. I feel guilty if I have to water the garden!
interesting. i have been intrigued by the explosion of bottled water drinkers/brands. primarily because it SEEMS that the biggest proponents of the drinking of bottled water are the healthy, enviromental folks. let's talk about plastic! of course, i'm spoiled. i've always lived in places with good drinking water.
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