The Tampa Tribune
Published: July 5, 2008
TAMPA - TAMPA - Mayors across the country are talking up the virtues of tap water, some are even banning their cities from buying water in bottles.
They say bottled water costs more than tap, that bottles are bad for the environment.
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, however, has no plans to follow the ban-the-bottle movement.
"The trend toward bottled water has been very healthy for our country," Iorio said. "It doesn't make sense to be down on bottled water. We should be encouraging people to drink more water."
Last month, the U.S. Conference of Mayors adopted a resolution encouraging cities to phase out government use of bottled water and promote the importance of municipal water. The mayors, in their resolution, said bottled water costs more than tap water, and that plastic water bottles are "one of the fastest growing sources of municipal waste."
Several cities already are phasing out bottled water, with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom leading the charge. Officials in Seattle and London are onboard.
Iorio understands the environmental concerns some have about bottled water, but she says the plastic bottles are recyclable. And drinking water, she says, is healthier than drinking soda, which also comes in plastic bottles.
Still, some Tampa City Council members recently have questioned the city's spending on bottled water, especially in light of other budget cuts.
Tampa spends roughly $50,000 a year on bottled water.
The majority of that, about $31,000, is spent on water for the city's fire, public works, parks and recreation, transportation, fleet services and wastewater employees, said Greg Spearman, purchasing director. Those employees tend to spend long days outdoors in the sun.
"That's a way for the city to make sure they stay hydrated," Spearman said.
The $31,000 buys 96,000 bottles of water, plus 9,000 one-gallon jugs and 300 five-gallon containers for water coolers. The city has contracts with Zephyrhills and Ultra Pure.
The city also typically spends about $16,000 to $20,000 a year on bottled water to hand out at promotional events such as groundbreakings, ribbon-cuttings and other community events.
After the water treatment plant was upgraded in 2001, the city started bottling its own water to send a message to the public that Tampa's tap water tastes just as good as bottled water, said Eli Franco, the water department's distribution division manager.
The bottles sport a "Clearly Tampa" water label with Tampa's skyline in the background. Each bottle costs the city about 37 cents, Franco said.
City council members have mixed opinions on whether the city should continue buying bottled water. At a recent meeting, Councilwoman Mary Mulhern said the city should quit spending $31,000 a year on bottled water when it is laying off employees.
Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena handed out a New York Times article on the issue to reporters. In an interview, she said she understands the need to hydrate city workers who spend most of their time outdoors, but the larger containers she sees around city hall are unnecessary.
"We are in a tough budget time," she said. "We can easily not buy bottled water."
Councilman Tom Scott said he hasn't given the bottled water issue much thought but said he would consider stopping the practice "if we were really strapped. We are, but not to the point we have to take water away from workers in the field."
Councilman Charlie Miranda said he understands the promotional side of the city's bottled water, and he understands the need to give out bottles to some city workers who work outdoors, but "I don't believe in the city council buying their own bottled water and then complaining about others buying bottled water. Let's cut it out."
Reporter Ellen Gedalius can be reached at egedalius@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-7679.
