Vancouver councillor wants city to stop selling bottled water

A Vancouver councillor wants the city to stop selling and distributing bottled water, including at city hall, public libraries and concession stands in city parks.

"We end up with seven million plastic water bottles in landfill every year," said Tim Stevenson, chair of the Metro Vancouver water committee. "They're not biodegradable. They just clog up the landfill."

He put forward a motion on Tuesday asking staff to produce a report on ways the city can stop selling and distributing a product "that is many times more expensive than gas," and which "you can get free from the tap."

Stevenson said a $650 million water filtration plant, expected to be operational by the end of the year, will ensure pure drinking water is delivered through the tap.

The Seymour-Capilano water filtration plant will treat water drawn from both Seymour and Capilano reservoirs, which supply 70 per cent of Metro Vancouver's drinking water.

"There will be never any silt in the water — just pure water. We need to educate people about water," Stevenson said, adding a massive ad campaign will be launched this fall in Metro Vancouver so residents will get the message.

Stevenson said abandoning bottled water will contribute to better health because the plastic in bottled water will leach into the human system.

He said the city will need to build more water fountains throughout the city so that people can obtain tap water conveniently.