New bubbler installed at Jamaica Pond

A new water fountain and water bottle filling station was installed this month in Jamaica Pond Park at the corner of the Jamaicaway and Perkins Street. The water fountain includes a water bottle filling station, as well as a drinking fountain. It was unveiled on Oct. 9.

“Jamaica Pond was the perfect place to put it,” said City Councilor Matt O’Malley, who is responsible for the water fountain. “I live on the Jamaicaway, and to drive by the fountain every day and see runners, walkers, and hikers appreciating it and using it is just tremendous,” O’Malley said.

Produced by the company Globaltap, the station is made of heavy-duty stainless steel and painted with corrosion protection and a graffiti-proof coating. The fountain installed in Jamaica Plain is green, about 5 feet tall, and features the name Globaltap on the top. It has a drinking fountain wing and a filling station curved in the shape of the number 7.

The effort for its installation began last December when O’Malley held a hearing about how there should be more water fountains around the city. A representative from Globaltap was in attendance, and offered to donate one of its systems.

Globaltap is a for-profit business whose mission is to provide safe drinking water around the world through their water fountains. O’Malley mentioned that he’d seen great success with their systems in other cities, and that this was a great opportunity for the community and visitors of Jamaica Plain.

“Boston is ranked high in the country for best tasting and cleanest tap water,” Matt O’Malley said, “but people are still spending about $1.75 per disposable bottle of water.”

Massachusetts is ranked 6th in the country for bottled water consumption, which means we buy 300 million gallons of bottled water per year. The water filling station is intended to encourage residents to use reusable water bottles more regularly.

The city councilor hopes to install other fountains like this around Boston. His first project will be in West Roxbury, where the City is already renovating playgrounds.

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