Aspen Water Tastes Better

The insistent marketing of Fiji Water in Aspen has infuriated me. Aspen tap water comes from local mountain springs, and trucks aren't necessary to bring it up the mountain, nor boats to bring it from distant exotic islands. Fiji Water sponsors many of the Aspen events, thus buying the right to have its logo all over town. I think it's shameful! Aspen tap water is delicious.

Today I was happy to read (here) that the city of Aspen is rolling out an effort to create appreciation for their own local water. According to a city official: "When people talk about bottled water, they have this image that comes from mountain streams and pristine environments, and they don't realize that's exactly where Aspen's tap water comes from."

Like several national parks that I visited lately, Aspen is installing "filling stations" where tourists and locals are encouraged to fill their re-usable water bottles instead of buying plastic ones and throwing them away. The city is selling stainless steel bottles with the logo "Aspen Tap" and the words “Better Than Bottled.” The national parks have also instituted a policy that park-located shops sell only re-usable bottles, not bottled water, a policy that wouldn't work in a city with private enterprise. I hope that they can counter the pernicious advertising efforts.