Messmer, a Rye Democrat, said she introduced HB 1632 because she “wanted to educate the public about their water.” “Most times when we have an issue with a public water supply people turn to bottled water.
Messmer wants people to know what’s in their bottled water and whether it’s safe.
Andrea Amico is co-founder of Testing for Pease, a local group that has pushed for people exposed to PFASs at the former Pease Air Force base to learn more about the health effects that could come with the exposure.
She called Messmer’s legislation “a good idea because we’ve seen a significant amount of water contamination throughout the state of New Hampshire.” “When that happens, many people start using bottled water as a result of a public water supply being contaminated.
Amico’s husband and two of her children were exposed to the water at Pease.
“I think it would be really important to know how safe bottled water is, because otherwise we could just be getting a false sense of security from drinking it,” Amico said.
Providing information on the label of a bottled water container can help educate the public about what potentially dangerous chemicals is in the bottled water they’re paying for, she said.
The bill could face some strong opposition.
Bottled water producers are required by law to monitor and test for all substances listed in the FDA bottled water standards of quality regulations.” The association noted that “FDA bottled water regulations preempt any standards or labeling requirements adopted by a state legislature or agency.” The group also questioned the feasibility of putting the information required under Messmer’s bill on a bottled water container.
The study determined that including a long and detailed list of specific substances found in bottled water on the product labeling was not feasible because ‘such information would be excessive in limited label space, particularly on the small, single serving bottles,’” the association added.