Let them drink Sparkletts

San Diego city officials are spending $11.8 million to study whether sewage can be converted into drinking water, but their personal water supply is entirely another matter. According to a recent request for proposal, the City is shopping around for a contractor to supply its offices with paper cups and “Five Gallon bottle dispensers,” to be filled with delivered “Natural Spring Water,” or facsimile thereof. “Bottled water shall be free of bacteria and all other contaminants which would be detrimental to the health of the consumer or affect the taste of the water,” the request demands. “Contractor shall submit proof of certification by the International Bottled Water Association, the National Sanitation Federation Including Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point Plan, and the State of California Department of Health Services — Food and Drug Branch, at the time of bid submittal.”