Qualities of groundwater source used for production of commercial bottled waters in Korea

Due to skepticism among the population regarding the quality of municipal piped water, the production and consumption of commercial bottled water have been largely increasing in Korea since 1995. This is when commercial sale of bottled water (known as natural mineral water), sourced from groundwater, was first permitted by the Korean government. The Drinking Water Management Act has led to regular and intensive monitoring of original groundwater quality and environmental impact survey required for commercial bottled water production. The Act enforces regular quality analyses of groundwater source and bottled water every quater. To obtain an official permit for production of bottled water, an extremely intensive environmental impact survey is mandatory, including chemical analyses of the original groundwater and an in-depth analysis of sustainable groundwater quantity. A total of 630 data sets pertaining to original groundwater quality for bottled water production, surrounding groundwater, and nearby stream water at bottled water production sites in Korea revealed that arsenic, nitrate, and fluoride are the most frequently occurring contaminants, even though their values adhere to the Korean drinking water standards. Therefore, continued monitoring and management of these contaminants is required for sustainable production of bottled water.