Bottle Water Vs Tap Water Case Study 2022

Running head: BOTTLE WATER VS TAP WATER
Public Perception of Drinking Water Quality in UK: Bottle Water vs. Tap Water
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the public behaviour of drinking bottled water
verses tap water, to examine the attitude or underlying perception behind the behaviour, to
perform evidence based research for examining the healthier option between bottled water
and tap water, to find the possible way out to change the perception of common people if
required. In this research, both interview and survey tool have been used to collect data. The
survey method has been used to collect data from the public of UK regarding their perception
on bottled water and tap water along with the underlying factors. The interview tool has been
used to collect information from 3 experts in this field. In this research both qualitative and
non quantitative analyses have been used. To analyse the quantitative data of survey
descriptive statistics has been used considering the mean, median, mode and standard
deviation as well as percentage distribution. To find the interrelation between the underlying
factors and perceptions of the respondents with their behaviour the Pearson correlation
statistics has been used. For analysing the qualitative data collected from the interview
narrative analysis have been used.

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Table of Content
Chapter 1: Introduction..............................................................................................................6
1.1 Background......................................................................................................................6
1.2 Problem statement............................................................................................................8
1.3 Research questions...............................................................................................................9
1.4 Research Aims and Objectives.............................................................................................9
1.5 Research Structure...........................................................................................................9
Chapter 2: Literature Review...................................................................................................10
2.1 Introduction....................................................................................................................10
2.2 Drinking habit among people.........................................................................................10
2.3 Perception of people.......................................................................................................14
2.4 Scientific validity of perception.....................................................................................15
Chapter 3: Methodology..........................................................................................................20
3.1 Introduction....................................................................................................................20
3.2 Research philosophy......................................................................................................21
3.3 Research Approach........................................................................................................21
3.4 Research Design.............................................................................................................22
3.5 Population and sampling................................................................................................22
3.6 Data collection process..................................................................................................23
3.7 Data analysis process.....................................................................................................23
3.8 Ethical Consideration.....................................................................................................24

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3.9 Summary........................................................................................................................24
Chapter 4: Analysis and findings.............................................................................................25
4.1 Introduction:...................................................................................................................25
4.2 Quantitative analysis of survey responses......................................................................25
4.2.3 Demographical analysis..........................................................................................25
4.2 Analysis of Interview.....................................................................................................29
Chapter 5: Conclusion..............................................................................................................35
5.1 Summary........................................................................................................................35
5.2 Conclusion......................................................................................................................36
References:...............................................................................................................................39
Appendices:..............................................................................................................................40
Appendix A: Survey Questionnaire.....................................................................................40
Appendix 2: Interview questionnaire...................................................................................41

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Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Background
Water can be considered as one of the most essential resources and the one resource
that possess imperative usage. It is highly required in the everyday life for individuals and
affects the wellbeing of the same. Majority of the governments across the woks have
succeeded to provide clean as well as safe drinking water to its residents. A good number of
developed countries have already provided tap water basic drinking standards. In recent
years, however, there has been evidence of a drastic rise in bottled water for global
consumption, especially in developed countries where water can be drunk directly from the
tap. Bottled water consumption in the United States was doubled in 2015 to an average
annual volume per capita of 138.17 L. Initially, bottled water emerged as a large, mainstream
commercial beverage in Western Europe. However, within the last few years, the Asian
market has become one of the major manufacturers of bottled water. In fact, Asia itself
became the largest regional market in 2011, edging out North America and easily outshining
Europe along with Asia. However, the municipal corporation of Asia, Singapore, Hong
Kong and UK confidently claim the safety as well as drinking ability of the municipal tap
water. In spite of the availability of drinkable tap water, the people of the four mentioned
nation are found to be highly inclined towards the consumption of bottled water. The chief
purpose of this research is to find out the perception of common people about the drinking
water quality in United Kingdom. The chief question that can be raised includes why the
consumption of bottle water is a major concern especially in the places of UK were drinkable,
clear and safe Tap water.
The first concern associated with the consumption of bottled water include bottled
water requires a huge amount of energy on the basis of both production as well as
distribution. For instance, the total amount of energy required for the consumption of a unit

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of bottled water includes 5.6 to 10.2 MJper liter, while this number is typically 0.005 MJ per
liter for tap water treatment and distribution. Thus, it can be clearly understood that the
reduction of the consumption of bottled water possess the potential to reduce energy
consumption in the nation to a great extent. The second factor includes, bottled water possess
the potential to impose a negative impact on environment. The chief reason behind this is the
amount of plastic waste generated due to regular consumption of bottled water. Plastic bottles
are made out of petroleum and majority of the bottles are not recycled on a daily basis. In UK
the rate of recycling for plastic is considered to be 23 percent. Thus with such low rate of
plastic recycling, it can be clearly understood that generation of plastic bottles is highly
harmful for the environment of the nation. A good number of plastic bottle are found to be
ending up in landfills. Not only this, a good number of bottles even found as litters in forests,
lakes as well as oceans. Plasticizers and EDs that are present in Tap water can be considered
to be the chief compounds that are involved in adverse effects on the health of individuals.
For instance, one of the mostly used chemicals in Pet bottle includes i(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate
(DEHP). The mentioned chemical is harmful plasticizers and imposes highly adverse impact
on the health of human beings. Another major issue for bottled water is the EDs. Some in
vitro studies investigated exposure in bottled mineral water to chemicals with estrogen-like
activity. Pollution level estrogens enhance the risk of breast cancers in women and prostate
cancer in men. In spite of these burning concerns, as per the data of the survey conducted in
the year 2019, more than 67 percent of the residents are found to be consuming bottled water
and are of the perception that bottled water are healthier option compared to water.

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1.2 Problem statement
Convincing the public to adapt and maintain sustainable behaviors such as drinking
tap water, despite the potential for significant environmental and social benefits, is a
challenging task rather than bottled water. Sustainability education has developed rapidly in
universities, and universities are perceived to play active roles in providing students with
understanding of the environment and sustainability. Empirical study on this group is
therefore important in terms of their perceptions and choices of drinking water on university
campuses, as it would serve as a stepping stone to understand the behavior of drinking water
bottled by the general public as compared to that of drinkable tap water. Empirical study on
this group is therefore important in terms of their perceptions and choices of drinking water
on university campuses, as it would serve as a stepping stone to understand the behavior of
drinking water bottled by the general public as compared to that of drinkable tap water.
However, it is worth highlighting the health implications of drinking bottled water and
drinking tap water. Various studies have shown that bottled water generally contains higher
levels of essential minerals relative to tap water. Both Ca and Mg reduce cardiovascular
disease, cancer, and osteoporosis tendencies. Where the bedrock is younger and contains
more Ca and Mg, bottled waters from the European continent or other areas generally have
higher levels of both. Thus it is highly crucial for the population to consume tap water instead
of bottled water. For it is highly crucial to understand the perspective of the common people
to enhance their awareness. Hence in this research paper, analysis of the perspective of the
common people of UK along with obtaining a detailed understanding oof the benefits of the
tap water over bottled water has been conducted.

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1.3 Research questions
From the above problem statement some of the major facts can be identified that we are
still not completely aware off. One of the major factor is the most recent drinking habit of
citizen comparing bottle water and tap water, which could give the overview of the scenario.
The perceptions of UK citizens about bottle water and tap water are also unknown that
influence their drinking behaviour. The scientific evidence based perception compared to the
common perspective needs to be disclosed. After that, we need to find the strategy to change
the perception of common people if it is required to improve the public health and
sustainability. Hence, as per the above concerns the following research questions has been
developed.
 What is the current drinking habit of citizen comparing bottle water and tap water?
 What is the perception of UK citizens about bottle water and tap water?
 How valid is these perceptions and why?
 How to change the perception of the common people if required?
1.4 Research Aims and Objectives
The aim of this study is to explore the public perception and behaviour regarding
drinking bottle water and tap water with respect to the actual scientific evidences. The
secondary aim of this research is to find the possible way out to change the perception of
common people. Therefore, the research objectives of this study have been presented below:
 To explore the public behaviour of drinking bottled water verses tap water
 To examine the attitude or underlying perception behind the behaviour
 To perform evidence based research for examining the healthier option between
bottled water and tap water
 To find the possible way out to change the perception of common people if required