Old pipes prevent bottled water ban

PITTSBURGH, June 28 (UPI) -- Pittsburgh's mayor wants to lessen the city's bottled water consumption, but old pipes in the city-county building are getting in the way, a spokeswoman said.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors approved a plan Monday to advise cities to put and end to spending taxpayer dollars on bottled water because it produces extra trash and costs too much money, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Saturday.

Joanna Doven, a spokeswoman for Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, said the city leader backs pro-environment efforts, but old pipes in the 91-year-old city building turn water a gross orange color.

Pittsburgh annually shells out about $26,000 to Crystal Springs in Atlanta to keep 5-gallon bottles of water stocked in the city-county building, the newspaper said.

Doven said the mayor wants to make the building more eco-friendly, but bottled water will continue to be used for some time.