Take Back the Tap

WHY CHOOSE SQUAMISH TAP WATER?

• Choosing Squamish tap water is better for you, the environment, and your wallet.
• Bottled water is expensive, strains our natural resources, and the empty bottles fill our landfill and waste streams.
• Municipal water systems are regulared by Health Canada's Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality and are among the safest in the world.

What is the District doing?

District of Squamish Council passed a motion to phase out the sale of bottled water on municipal property.  To support this initiative and encourage the consumption of Squamish tap water, the District is improving access to tap water at its indoor and outdoor facilities by increasing the number of fountains, filling stations, and dispensing systems.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Between 40 and 80 percent of empty bottles end up as litter and/or are placed directly into the garbage and take up unnecessary space in landfills.
• Bottled water consumes significant amounts of non-renewable fossil fuels to extract, package and transport water, creating unnecessary air quality and climate change impacts.
• It takes 3 liters of water to produce 1 litre of bottled water.
• It takes 2,000 years for one plastic bottle to breakdown in a landfill, and it never really leaves the soil.
• Bottled water is transported long distance via transport trucks and energy is also used by on board refrigeration methods. 

(Source: The Pacific Institute's Bottled Water and Energy Fact Sheet)

What can you do?

• "Take Back the Tap" at your home, workplace or school!
• Download the District of Squamish "Take Back the Tap" poster
• Check out this additional resource:
  • David Suzuki Foundation "Take Back the Tap" Challenge