NBC25 NEWS - We get water for free when we turn on the tap.  But these days a lot of us just feel better about getting our water out of a bottle.

In 2005 the United States consumed about 7 1/2 billion gallons of bottled water.  It's a number that grows by about 10 percent every year.

Next to soda, it's biggest selling beverage by the bottle.

It could be a good thing.  After all, water is healthier than soda.

But it turns out all those plastic water bottles aren't healthy for the environment.

It's trendy, tasty, and for people on the go, it's just easy.

Americans buy 28 billion water bottles a year.

The bad news is 80 percent end up in landfills.

Tim Hunter works at a recycling center and says he thinks people don't return the bottles because it just doesn't pay.

He explains, "Most folks tend to look at just the dollar figure.  ‘What can I get for the plastics?’  If the market’s not there, they're not getting a whole lot, there's not a lot of incentive for them to recycle other than it's the right thing to do."

While it may be the right thing to do, some people think storing the empty bottles requires too much space.  Others don't have recycling available.

“Well we live out in the country, so there isn't any recycling there, so it's just kind of tough," says Larry Hein.

So instead of throwing his bottles out, Larry Hein never buys them in the first place.

"A lot of mountain bike riders they prefer a Camelback, which is a hydration system that you wear on your back.  It has a backpack and a water bladder with a hose," Hein says.

Hunter also avoids paying for plastic.

He adds, "Bottled water costs more than gasoline if you figure out the price per gallon.  We have a filter at our house, I'll drink that tap water as long as water is safe.  Bottled water doesn't do anything for me so I just don't drink it."

The Pacific Institute says manufacturing, storing, and transporting the bottles uses about 17 million barrels of oil a year.

Considering all the negative environmental factors that come with a single bottle of water, why buy it by the bottle when you can get it from the tap?

"I think a lot of people think that bottled water is probably a safer product.  But it's not going to be any safer than the tap water.  But that's my personal opinion," says Hunter.

It may be hunter's opinion, but he may be exactly right.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency strictly regulates tap water.

In fact, the FDA says safety guidelines for bottled water are significantly less strict than for tap water.

The Texas Environmental Protection Agency says there's no clear cut evidence proving one is healthier than the other.

In the end, it's up to the consumer to decide if the bottle is really worth it.

The United States is the largest market for bottled water.  In 2006 more than eight billion gallons of bottled water were sold.