We are Dopper and we are here to end packaged water.
We're going to the COP28 UAE as part of the Dutch Climate Envoy, invited to help lead the agenda as COP28 Water Champions.
We choose to seize the world stage to advocate for systemic change, because it’s absurd that drinking water is still packaged and sold for profit.
We’re confident that as a company we can drive this change. Just like consumers can, by drinking tap water instead of packaged water. And we need global leaders to accelerate the transformation.
And it is absolutely necessary.
Like for Kamal, an 8-year-old boy. He lives in Nepal where water supply is inadequate. Sadly, he isn't alone. Did you know that today 33% of all children live in water-stressed areas?More shockingly, by 2025 half of the global population - four billion people - could face water scarcity.(1)
We're sure you all agree, we must prevent this from happening. And a ban on packaged water will help us get there.
Why? Because packaged water has profound environmental, water availability, and emission consequences:
The production depletes water resources, consuming two to four liters of water to produce just one litre of drinking water.(2) Wasting precious water to create water should be halted.
It’s polluting our world. Every minute, a million single-use plastic bottles are purchased, amounting to 25 million tonnes of plastic waste annually destined for landfills or unregulated waste.II Also, the CO2 emissions of packaged water are 300 times higher than tap water.(3)
It averts attention and resources from the development of public water systems. Less than half of the $270 billion the world pays for bottled water annually, would be sufficient to ensure access to clean tap water for the entire population.(2) We must act now. As Dopper, our focus is on Europe, where 95% can safely drink tap water.(4) Especially in this region, laws and regulations can be swiftly introduced, creating substantial impact.
To world leaders, to the international community and to you: Let's take a stance and deliver tangible results on water policy and water security. Together we can end packaged water and provide Kamal and the rest of the world with clean, safe and sustainable tap water.
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(1) United Nations, The United Nations World Water Development Report 2023: Partnerships and Cooperation for Water. UNESCO, Paris
(2) Bouhlel, Z., Köpke, J., Mina, M., and Smakhtin, V., 2023. Global Bottled Water Industry: A Review of Impacts and Trends United Nations, University Institute for Water, Environment and Health, Hamilton, Canada
(3) Botto, Stefano. (2009). Tap Water vs. Bottled Water in a Footprint Integrated Approach. Nature Precedings. 10.1038/npre.2009.3407.1
(4) WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (JMP) –Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000 –2020, https://washdata.org/data