A9

By EMMA REILLY
The Canadian Press

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TORONTO - As a municipal push to ban the sale of plastic water bottles begins to spread to cities across Canada, consumers across the country seem unready to break their addiction to the bottle.

Many consumers remain suspicious of tap water and continue to believe that bottled water is safer, despite the environmental impact of plastic bottles and the fact that municipal water undergoes more stringent testing, said Richard Girard, a researcher with the environmental advocacy group Polaris Institute.

"Corporations have created a distrust in municipal tap water systems by marketing their products as the only healthy way to drink water," Girard said in an interview from Ottawa.

"We see bottled water as a redundant product. It's not needed. We have good tap water in Canada.

"If people have concerns about chlorine in the water or other issues, there are filters that are designed to take that out,'' Girard said.

Kate Jordan, spokeswoman for Ontario's Environment Ministry, said more than 99 per cent of all municipal drinking water meets provincial standards, despite the perception.

Girard estimates that 20 per cent of Canadians currently rely solely on bottled water. And a Statistics Canada report released this summer suggested the demand continued to make a steady climb.

Three in 10 households drank bottled water in 2006, according to the report, which also found people in high-income homes drank more bottled water than people with lower incomes.

It noted that just 25 per cent of university educated households drank their water from bottles.

Almost 1.5 billion litres of bottles water were produced for Canadians in 2003, the latest figure available, compared to 820 million in 2000.

"Bottled water just represents the most ridiculous product that has been mass-marketed in the last 15 years, when we can get tap water out of our taps at home," said Girard.

Canada's addiction to bottled water is largely based on convenience, said Justin Sherwood, president of Refreshments Canada, a national trade association that represents manufacturers of non-alcoholic beverages.

"There's any number of instances when tap water just isn't available," said Sherwood.

"Really, bottled water provides a convenient, safe and healthy hydration option when you're on the go."