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Food

1 liter bottled water (PET bottle)

1 litra pullovettä (PET-pullo)

0.7
Truecost score
Data confidence: HIGH

Carbon from multiple industry and academic LCAs. Waste from NAPCOR. Toxicity is directional.

One liter of bottled water in PET produces ~160 g CO₂e and leaves 25g of plastic waste. Hundreds of times the carbon footprint of tap water.

Did you know? In countries with safe tap water, bottled water is one of the most unnecessary environmental costs — tap water has 1/450th the carbon footprint and fewer microplastics.
Transparent calculation

How was this number determined?

The Truecost score is calculated from absolute physical values. Each row below shows the measured value, how it was normalized, and where it comes from.

Dimension Absolute value Score 100 = Normalized Weight Weighted Confidence
Carbon Emissions 0.16 kg CO₂e 9.5 kg CO₂e 1.68 ×0.35 0.59 HIGH
Water Consumption 1.4 liters 3840 liters 0.04 ×0.2 0.01 MEDIUM
Land Use 0.0003 m²·year 51 m²·year 0.0 ×0.2 0.00 MEDIUM
Waste 0.025 kg 5 kg 0.5 ×0.15 0.07 HIGH
Toxicity 0.5 µDALY 162 µDALY 0.31 ×0.1 0.03 LOW
Truecost score (weighted sum) 0.7

Share of your annual planetary budget

Carbon Emissions 0.02%
Water Consumption <0.01%
Waste <0.01%
Toxicity <0.01%
Source data by dimension

Where do the absolute values come from?

Carbon Emissions
HIGH
NIH/BIER study: 163g CO₂ per 1.5L European bottle = 109g/L. North American 500mL: 83g = 166g/L. CarbonCloud: 0.28 kg CO₂e/kg for 1L bottle. Normalized for 1L: ~160g CO₂e. Breakdown: PET production 38%, transport 29%, retail 12%, water extraction/treatment 21%.
  • BIER (2012): Research on the Carbon Footprint of Bottled Water — Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable
  • NIH (2023): Life Cycle Environmental Impact of PET Water Bottles
  • CarbonCloud (2024): Water 1L PET bottle — product report

Well-studied. Range: 100-300g CO₂e/L depending on transport distance and bottle weight. Local spring water at lower end, imported at higher.

Water Consumption
MEDIUM
IBWA data: 1.41 liters total water (including the 1L consumed) to produce 1L finished bottled water. Additional lifecycle water for PET production not included. Full lifecycle water footprint including PET: up to 3-6 L per L of product.
  • IBWA (2024): Environmental Footprint of Bottled Water
  • UNEP (2020): Single-use plastic bottles LCA recommendations

The 1.41L IBWA figure is conservative — only production water. Full lifecycle including PET resin production is higher.

Land Use
MEDIUM
PET from petroleum — minimal direct land use. Bottling plants have small footprint per unit. Negligible per liter.
  • NIH (2023): Life Cycle Environmental Impact of PET Water Bottles

Land use is not the relevant dimension for bottled water.

Waste
HIGH
1L PET bottle weighs ~25g (range: 20-35g depending on design). Only ~33% recycled globally (NAPCOR 2023). Remaining ~67% goes to landfill or environment. PET persists 450+ years.
  • NAPCOR (2023): PET Life Cycle Assessment Report
  • IBWA (2024): Environmental Footprint of Bottled Water

PET waste is a major environmental concern. Even when recycled, downcycling is common.

Toxicity
LOW
PET bottles contain antimony trioxide catalyst. Antimony leaches at elevated temperatures. Microplastic particles found in 93% of bottled water samples (Mason et al. 2018). Long-term health effects uncertain but endocrine disruption potential exists.
  • Mason et al. (2018): Synthetic polymer contamination in bottled water — Frontiers in Chemistry
  • Westerhoff et al. (2008): Antimony leaching from PET bottles — Water Research 42

Microplastic and antimony exposure is real but health impact quantification in µDALY is very uncertain.

Comparisons

Methodology

Based on BIER (2012) and NIH lifecycle assessments. Covers PET resin production, bottle manufacturing, water extraction, filling, transport, retail, and disposal.

Sources