Water

Rain (and other precipitation) is the origin of all water. But after rainwater falls, geological and meteorological factors influence the next step in the journey. When winter snowfall in the Alps melts in springtime, it flows into rivers and the water table. Springs at the base of the mountain then bubble forth with this relatively young water. But in other parts of the world, the ground may quickly absorb falling rainwater, and the water may not reach the surface again for another ten thousand years. Much of what we drink today is rainwater that fell hundreds or thousands of years ago. Water that circulates in a deep spring, well, or artesian well is generally more protected from human and animal waste than surface water or water from a shallow aquifer. But deep-circulating water often has a higher mineral content because it interacts with rocks for longer periods. Still, shallow-circulating water or even surface water may be of fine quality - environmental conditions make all the difference. From pristine and protected surroundings, shallow water and even rainwater are clean, safe, and delightful to drink. Since the ultimate source of water is always rain.

History

Recent discoveries in astrophysics suggest that water is not native to Earth but rather was imported from the edges of our solar system as ice trapped in comets. Scientists think this water was first delivered here more than four billion years ago. During the meteor shower that gave the Moon most of its craters, Earth received five hundred times more "hits" than its moon did; since the planet has a greater critical mass than its satellite, Earth was also able to hold on to much of the water from the ice.
Today about three thousand brands of bottled water are available around the world. The growing trend has generated a large demand, and almost every day a new bottled water brand or company is born.

What is Real Bottled Water

Much bottled water is really bottled municipal tap water—in the United States, government and industry estimate that municipal water makes up twenty-five to forty percent of the bottled water sold. American bottlers are also permitted by the FDA to label water as spring water even when it’s treated with chemicals or pumped to the surface through a well near a true spring. For example,wells across southern Maine pump water to be sold as Nestlé’s Poland Spring, which is sourced neither from Poland Spring nor any other spring. It’s helpful to make a distinction between two different kinds of bottled water.

Bottled water

The salient characteristic of this type is that it is bottled, providing a convenient package for on-the-go hydration. Water fountains or sinks would work just as well to quench your thirst, but water companies’ self-serving marketing campaigns may have persuaded you that water is healthier when it comes from a bottle. This attitude turns bottled water into a commodity, regardless of where the water comes from. Convenience is the key; the water itself is nothing special. The large, powerful companies behind these waters ensure that their products are the ones found in everyday supermarkets, unfortunately. Water like this is the reason journalists sometimes condemn bottled water as a big scam, and I can understand their thinking. I would be angry, too, if I bought water in the supermarket only to discover that it was in fact purified tap water. But I’m not angry,because I know better: I buy bottled water.

Special bottled water

These very special waters express terroir. Bottled at the source, they may be naturally carbonated and are treated only minimally (if at all). Contact with geological formations imparts a unique mineral composition to each water; many of these compositions are reputed to have healthful properties. Some waters may have been formed only thirty days before bottling, whereas others are more than twenty thousand years old. Many companies and individuals care deeply about the water they sell and its source. I talk to them every day, and they could certainly talk about their product all day they are proud of delivering natural bottled water and obsessed with protecting its source. Some of these companies are new, but sometimes the waters have been used since Roman times, more than two thousand years ago.

The Myth of Pure Water

Marketing campaigns for commodity bottled waters try to make us think water must be "pure" to be good. Being clean and healthy isn’t enough - water has to be pure, and the purer the better. These marketers tell us that nothing but hydrogen and oxygen should be in our water. Ironically, this misconception means people often drink distilled water when taking mineral supplements, which contain the same minerals that have been removed from the water. Even distillation, which removes more contaminants than any other purification method, does not produce completely "pure" water. Rising steam is supposed to leave all impurities behind in the distilling process, but in fact gases, some chemicals, and some organic compounds can be taken along with the steam. Active carbon filters are used to eliminate those remaining contaminants from distilled water, but some impurity remains with this process, too. In reverse osmosis (RO), water molecules are forced through a rubber membrane, leaving impurities behind. But gases, some chemicals (including chloramine and arsenic), and some bacteria can beat this technique, too. So there is no such thing as pure water. It’s a myth. Natural water has mineral content. By removing minerals, water becomes acidic and aggressive, meaning it will seek to replace the minerals removed. Water treated by either distillation or RO will become acidic upon contact with air airborne carbon dioxide reacts with the water, taking the place of the removed minerals or contaminants. Because water is a universal solvent, rainwater collects particles and chemicals even as it’s falling. Geological strata only add more to the composition the minerals and trace elements of the local area give each water its distinct terroir. Underground geology may filter water for decades or even millennia; when the water finally emerges at the source, it may not be "pure," but it is nevertheless clean and healthy. Clean, healthy water does not have to be pure. In fact, the waters with the most epicurean interest contain minerals and trace elements.