Water’s a Right… Right?

That’s what I thought. Check this out.

From the plastic production to the ocean in which so many of these bottles end up, this inspiring documentary trails the path of the bottled water industry and the communities which were the unwitting chips on the table. A powerful portrait of the lives affected by the bottled water industry, this revelatory film features those caught at the intersection of big business and the public’s right to water.

The award-winning documentary Tapped has embarked on an eco-aggressive 30- day/30-city cross country tour to get Americans “Off the Bottle.” Kicked off on World Water Day (March 22nd) Tapped’s Producer Sarah Olson and Director Stephanie Soechtig have taken their mobile showroom on the road, collecting pledges from people to reduce their bottled water use and trading empty plastic water bottles for reusable stainless steel Klean Kanteens. This mobile translucent recycling container will begin the “Get Off The (h20) Bottle” tour in Los Angeles with an empty cabin that will be filled with the public’s empty water bottles by the time the team ends up in New York City on Earth Day (April 22nd, 2010).

Director Stephanie Soechtig says about the tour, “1,500 bottles of water end up in landfills every second – that’s 30 million bottles of water a day! We wanted to show people just how much waste is generated by bottled water – so if that means we have to drive city to city to get the point across than that’s what we’ll do!” Enough to circle the equator every few days. That’s just insane.

The tour – consisting of 30 scheduled screenings of Tapped followed by a town hall Q&A – kicked off in Los Angeles on March 22nd en route to New York City. The Tapped truck can be tracked online as the Tapped website will be overhauled – featuring celebrity guest columns by Ed Begley Jr and David de Rothschild, a public service announcement by Grammy Winner Jack Johnson, and daily videos and bonus clips from the film.

The stops along the tour will include San Diego, CA (March 22nd), Tempe, AZ (March 23rd), Tucson, AZ (March 24th), Santa Fe, NM (March 26th), Salida, CO (March 27th), Denver, CO (March 30th), Boulder, CO (March 31st), Omaha, NE (April 2nd), Lawrence, KS (April 5th) Norman, OK (April 6th), Dallas, TX (April 7th), Austin, TX (April 8th), Houston, TX (April 9th), New Orleans, LA (April 10th), Atlanta, GA (April 13th), Nashville, TN (April 14th), Bloomington, IN (April 15th), Chicago, IL (April 16th), Goshen, IN (April 17th), Washington, DC (April 19-20) and New York City (April 21-23nd).

Purchase the DVD and Tapped will donate 10% to a water charity. Then loan it to friends, co-workers, neighbors, family to help spread the word: Water is a right.

The movie can also be downloaded from AMAZON or ITunes.

My quick two cents review. I watched this movie with my 3rd grade son and he finally comprehends bottled water’s negative impact–from the moment the water is pumped from the ground to the moment the empty bottle is disposed of. That it’s not just about how the industry impacts the environment, but his future health and well-being. As a parent, I want to protect him. I don’t want him to have to fight for drinking water and, ultimately, his–and his children’s–survival. Isn’t life challenging enough already? I urge you to watch this film with your family and then share it with as many others as you can.