Bottled Water Archives

Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water is promoted to Washington, D.C. consumers as “ethical,” “healthy,” and “sustainable”—despite the product line’s significant and ongoing contributions to plastic pollution

Washington, D.C. — Recycle Hawai‘i and Plastic Pollution Coalition, a project of Earth Island Institute, filed a complaint in the District of Columbia Superior Court on July 2, 2026, against Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water for alleged “false and deceptive marketing” in violation of the District of Columbia’s Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA). Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water promotes its products as “ethical,” “healthy,” and “sustainable” despite its reliance on single use plastics and involvement in developing a plastic recycling facility expected to harm the local environment.

While Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water advertises its products as “ethical,” healthy,” and “sustainable,” research shows that recycled plastic often contains more chemical additives than virgin plastic, which can leach into bottled beverages. Substances like heavy metals found in plastic are known to accumulate throughout the human body, and have been linked to serious health problems.

These findings run contrary to Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water’s advertising claims, including the following, which appear on its consumer-facing social media, website, and packaging:

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Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water’s brand image is centered around health and environmental sustainability, despite the company’s significant contribution to plastic pollution. Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water, which sells water in plastic bottles, markets itself as a superior alternative to other packaged water companies because it is “one of the only bottled waters to use high-grade 100% rPET.” On its packaging and website, it emphasizes the sustainability of recycling its products’ packaging—despite the fact that most plastic is never recycled, and that recycling does not address the key cause of plastic pollution: plastic production.

As alleged in Recycle Hawai‘i and Plastic Pollution Coalition’s complaint, Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water perpetuates misleading industry narratives around using recycled plastic in its packaging, claiming on its website that rPET has “strong environmental credentials,” is “incredibly sustainable,” and that rPET products “give[] us the opportunity to take better care of the environment […]” Other messaging on Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Water’s website contains the claim that its plastic bottles are “completely recyclable,” and advertises its bottles as “eco-friendly,” touting their “low carbon footprint”—despite the fact that plastic, made from fossil fuels and a growing source of greenhouse gas emissions, is not a low-carbon material. As the Complaint alleges, very little plastic is ever recycled, and instead, the majority of plastic bottles that are collected for recycling are sent to landfills or incinerators, or are shipped overseas, perpetuating plastic production and its resultant plastic pollution, and environmental injustices.

As an organization dedicated to raising awareness about the dangers of plastic pollution, Recycle Hawai‘i is compelled to take action when unethical representations undermine our collective ability to make good choices about the products we consume. And until regulatory agencies step up to protect the public from the serious impacts of plastic pollution, personal choices are the only real defense we have against it. Corporations that intentionally thwart our capacity to make good choices for ourselves and our families need to be exposed and held accountable.

— Kristine Kubat, Executive Director of Recycle Hawai‘i

Plastic bottles are plastic pollution—and plastic pollution is not ethical, healthy, nor a sustainable solution. Perpetuating the myth that “recycled plastic” and “plastic recycling” are environmentally friendly, is marketing that deliberately deceives consumers and undermines real solutions to end plastic pollution. Companies that advertise plastic bottled water as “healthy” are ignoring the numerous streams of harmful pollution which plastic creates—from plastic sourcing from oil and gas, to plastic bottle production, all the way through its use and disposal—plastic negatively impacts our bodies, water, air, soil, and environment.

— Julia Cohen, MPH, Co-founder and Executive Director of Plastic Pollution Coalition

One week ahead of the start of the 2026 World Cup, FIFA reversed its decision to allow “empty, transparent, reusable plastic bottles” up to 1 liter (1 quart) to be refilled at taps in its 16 stadiums across North America. While FIFA claims they are concerned for the safety of players if fans throw heavy reusable bottles at the pitch, critics say the change is in pursuit of profit—as buying plastic bottled water within the stadium is likely to be costly for fans. Just days later, FIFA has backed away from a total ban on brought-in water, stating on social media: “all fans will be permitted to bring in one, soft, plastic, 20 ounces (590ml), factory sealed disposable water bottle into any FIFA World Cup 2026 match in the USA and Canada.”

Still, a ban on reusables—even plastic reusables—undermines global progress being made to normalize reuse and refill, and instead panders to the bottled water industry that is actively undermining access to safe, public water to further their business interests.

Bottled Water Undermines Access to Safe Drinking Water

Bottled water is a big business. Globally, more than 1 million plastic bottles are sold every minute, and around 600 billion plastic bottles are produced every year. An estimated 2,000 times more energy is needed to produce bottled water than to supply tap water. And those bottles never go away. Municipalities have to pay massive sums to deal with plastic bottle pollution and the few bottles that are reclaimed.

Plastic bottles most often end up in landfills or incinerators, are shipped overseas under the guise of “recycling” only to be dumped and open-burned, leading to further serious pollution, injustice, and greenhouse gas emissions. In all cases, plastic bottles—like all plastics—break up into micro- and nanoplastics, polluting our bodies and environment.

Reusable Water Bottles Are Commonsense

However, reuse and refill is becoming increasingly normalized as the public demands action to address plastic pollution to benefit public health and the environment: New York City Council passed a bill that took effect last year allowing fans to bring empty reusable bottles into venues, saying the city can make it easier for people to do the right thing. Many stadiums in Canada, including BC Place Stadium, which will host several World Cup matches, already allow reusable bottles.

Nontoxic and plastic-free reuse and refill containers—such as those made from food-grade stainless steel and glass—are the gold standard, as plastic reusables can shed microplastics and plastic chemicals much like single-use plastic bottles. Still, even if FIFA allowed plastic reusables, it would prevent a significant number of single-use plastic bottles from being consumed and discarded: More than 6.5 million spectators total are expected to attend the games of the expanded 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Cup’s 104 games could produce upwards of 8 million pounds of trash—or one Super Bowl’s worth of trash per game.

A Watered Down Policy on Hydration at the World Cup

With high temperatures expected at the games, and even before FIFA’s reversal of its decision, scientists noted that FIFA’s heat safety measures are “inadequate.” Add to that a lack of stadium airflow and often lengthy travel required to get to the games, there is a real risk of heat exhaustion and heat stroke for fans who can’t easily access water. Access to water should not depend on the ability to purchase it from the bottled water industry that continues to profit from a basic human need.

Header image credit: K KStock – stock.adobe.com

Plastic Pollution Coalition, a project of Earth Island Institute, filed a complaint in the District of Columbia Superior Court on Friday, January 31, 2025, against The Wonderful Company, LLC and FIJI Water, LLC, makers of FIJI Water bottled water, for alleged “false and deceptive marketing” in violation of the District of Columbia’s Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA). The Wonderful Company, LLC and FIJI Water, LLC promote FIJI Water as “natural artesian water,” “protected from external elements,” and “untouched,” despite test results revealing that these products contain health-harming microplastics and plastic chemical bisphenol-A (BPA), and the companies’ roles in creating plastic pollution.

An independent laboratory evaluation revealed both microplastics and bisphenol-A (BPA) in FIJI “natural” bottled water products. Over the past several years, scientists have detected the presence of tiny plastic particles throughout the human body, and have linked their presence to male and female fertility issues and sexual dysfunction, heart attacks and strokes, neurodegenerative disorders, other serious health problems, and even death. BPA and other bisphenols, which are added to plastics to increase their rigidity, are known to disrupt the human endocrine (hormone) systems, and have been identified as among the most concerning of the more than 16,000 chemicals that are added to plastics.

These findings run contrary to FIJI Water’s advertising claims, including the following, which appear on its consumer-facing website:

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In addition to touting the “natural” qualities of its water on its consumer-facing website and packaging for FIJI Water, The Wonderful Company, LLC and FIJI Water, LLC pledge to “promote a circular economy.” But the Complaint alleges that the companies’ production of plastic bottled water—like all plastic production—inherently produces plastic pollution (waste), which is not circular.

As alleged in Plastic Pollution Coalition’s complaint, The Wonderful Company, LLC and FIJI Water, LLC perpetuate misleading industry narratives around plastic recycling by claiming that FIJI Water has made a “substantial step in reducing [its] plastic waste” in “replac[ing] nearly 70% of [their] bottled volume in the US with recycled material.” Other messaging on FIJI Water’s product packaging contains the claim “100% Recycled Plastic.” As the Complaint alleges,plastic is not designed to be recycled, and most plastic items, including plastic bottles that are collected for recycling, are never actually recycled. Instead, plastics collected for recycling are most often sent to landfills or incinerators, or are shipped overseas, perpetuating plastic production and its resultant plastic pollution, and environmental injustices.

Marketing bottled water in ways that portray it as healthy, safe, and sustainable is misleading to consumers, who are increasingly looking for products that are better for the environment and their health. While bottled water companies continue to tout their products as natural, the reality is that there is nothing natural about plastic. Plastic contaminates drinking water, the environment, and our bodies with hazardous microplastics and plastic chemicals.

— Julia Cohen, Co-founder and Managing Director of Plastic Pollution Coalition

Truth in advertising matters. Microplastics and BPA are neither natural nor healthy, and consumers deserve the truth about the products they consume. We will continue to hold companies like The Wonderful Company and FIJI Water accountable for claims that contradict the true impacts of their products on our health and the environment.

— Scott Hochberg, General Counsel of Earth Island Institute

Plastic Pollution Coalition does not seek monetary damages; instead, it seeks an order declaring that the representations of FIJI Water bottled water products made by The Wonderful Company, LLC and FIJI Water, LLC are unlawful under the CPPA, as well as an injunction that will end the deceptive advertising and marketing at issue.

Plastic pollution is an urgent global crisis threatening human, environmental, and climate health on a massive scale, from the plastic-producing petrochemical plants that disproportionately harm low-income, rural, and people of color communities; to the plastic pollution that is often dumped in Global South; to the toxic microplastics invading our bodies, which have been shown to contribute to cancer, neurotoxicity, reproductive issues, endocrine disruption, and genetic problems; and more. To solve this problem, our planet needs less plastic—not more.

Washington, D.C. — Plastic Pollution Coalition filed a lawsuit in the District of Columbia Superior Court today against Danone Waters of America, LLC, maker of evian bottled water headquartered in the United States, for false and deceptive marketing in violation of the District of Columbia’s Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA). Danone Waters of America promotes evian as “sustainable,” “natural,” and “healthy,” despite these products containing health-harming microplastics and plastic chemical bisphenol-A (BPA), and creating plastic pollution.

An independent laboratory evaluation revealed both microplastics and bisphenol-A (BPA) in evian “natural” bottled water products—and microplastics and BPA are far from natural or healthy. Over the past several years, scientists have detected the presence of tiny plastic particles throughout the human body, and have found their presence linked to fertility issues, heart attack, neurodegenerative disorders, stroke, other serious health problems, and even death. BPA and other bisphenols, which are added to plastics to increase their rigidity, are known to disrupt the human endocrine (hormone) systems, and have been identified as among the most concerning of the more than 16,000 chemicals that are added to plastics.

In addition to touting the “natural” qualities of its water on its consumer-facing website for evian, Danone Waters of America pledges that the brand is “committed to preserving [the environment] through long-lasting sustainability initiatives.” While the corporation boasts that it has “a history of sustainability,” its production of plastic bottled water is inherently unsustainable—and Plastic Pollution Coalition believes that it has not made any significant effort to address the plastic pollution it produces.

Instead, as alleged in Plastic Pollution Coalition’s lawsuit, Danone Waters of America perpetuates misleading industry narratives around plastic recycling by advertising its evian products as “100% recyclable” and including “Made from 100% Recycled Plastic” on product packaging. However, plastic is not designed to be recycled, and most plastic items, including plastic bottles, that are collected for recycling are never actually recycled. Instead, plastics collected for recycling are most often sent to landfills or incinerators, or are shipped overseas, perpetuating plastic production and its resultant plastic pollution, and environmental injustices.

People in the U.S. and all over the world are increasingly looking for products that are better for the environment and their health. Bottled water companies continue to capitalize on the healthiness of water—despite the significant toxic toll that the plastic bottles they package the water in takes on our planet and our bodies. The claims these companies make about their products being ‘sustainable’ and ‘natural’ are inaccurate and misleading to consumers.
— Julia Cohen, Co-founder and Managing Director of Plastic Pollution Coalition

We will continue to insist that corporations, like Danone, be honest with consumers about their products, especially when it comes to human and environmental health. There is nothing ‘natural’ about water containing petrochemical products and there is nothing ‘sustainable’ about single-use plastic bottles.
— Sumona Majumdar, Chief Executive Officer of Earth Island Institute

Danone Waters of America is a subsidiary of French multinational food corporation Danone. According to its evian consumer-facing website, Danone began importing evian Products from France into the United States and Canada in 1978, and the evian brand is now sold in more than 140 countries. In 2023 Danone was the #2 seller in packaged waters worldwide, and its evian bottled water was the corporation’s #2 selling bottled water, after its Aqua brand according to its annual report.

Plastic pollution is an urgent global crisis threatening human and environmental health on a massive scale, from the plastic-producing petrochemical plants that disproportionately impact communities of color and low-income communities to the plastic waste that is often dumped in developing countries to the toxic microplastics invading our bodies, which have been shown to contribute to cancer, neurotoxicity, reproductive issues, endocrine disruption, and genetic problems.

Plastic Pollution Coalition is represented by Richman Law & Policy, which specializes in consumer protection law.