According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), just for daily drinking purposes alone, an individual must stockpile a minimum of one gallon of water. In preparing for disasters or emergencies, one must, at least, squirrel away the amount of drinking water needed for three days by an individual. Take note that this recommended amount does not include the quantity of water needed to cook food and to fulfill hygienic purposes like washing and bathing. In addition to that, the factors that will affect the usage of water, like the climate, diet, and state of health of the people involved must all be taken into consideration. For example, an elderly, an ill person, a child, or a nursing mother will require more water than an average healthy adult. The level of physical activity by a person can also heavily dictate the bodily requirement for fluid intake, because a greater energy exerted by the body translates to a higher fluid requirement. Dorothy L. Miner of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service emphasized the need to have an emergency supply of water. Interruptions in the supply of water cannot be accurately predicted, not even how long they will last. Natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, and many others can ultimately cripple a community or household for a period of time, and if preparations were not done to store safe and clean drinking water prior to such testing times, then grave repercussions might befell a family or a community How to Store Water. The source of drinking water to be stored may come largely from the tap (municipal water) or in developing countries, artesian well sources or raw water from streams, ponds, and rivers. Rainwater can also be tapped and collected, but this is not a wise option in urban or heavily populated areas because of acid rain or smog-ridden precipitation resulting from pollution. Commercially bottled water, although an obvious solution in cases of emergency may be costly. There is also the unwelcome possibility that those stores and outlets selling bottled water will run out of such products during calamities. It is ideal that any household will have the capacity to process and purify its own drinking water straight from the tap and to store it properly in cases of emergencies, as seen in the preponderance of many residential Berkey water filtration systems. Now on the issue of selecting the appropriate vessel to store the drinking water in, two major points must be taken into account: One, the water container must be durable. Galloons, tanks, buckets, barrels, and bottles manufactured using polyethylene, the most common material used for bottled water and Bulk Food storage sold in the market today, may be used. Relatively inexpensive water buckets and water barrels made of food-grade plastic are widely obtainable and can serve either as cheap storage units or as portable storage units in the home or community. Recycled plastic soft drink containers, after thorough cleaning and disinfecting, can also be repurposed to store drinking water. Caution must be exercised though when using plastic water bottles as some of them may contain Bisphenol A or BPA, a compound linked to prostate and breast cancer, obesity, and reproductive and neurological problems. In 2008, the United States National Toxicology Program (NTP) gave statements on BPA exposure being linked to ill effects in the brain and prostate glands. The Endocrine Society in 2009 delved into issues regarding the negative health effects of BPA on humans. BPA-containing plastics are easily disguised from their BPA-free counterparts. Check the recycling symbol on the bottle. There are a total of seven plastic classes used in the packaging industry, and the ones that include the #7 recycling symbol have the potential to leach BPA into the water, most especially when the water has an elevated temperature. Also, one must never store water in milk cartons because they will leak and are close to impossible to properly disinfect. Residue clings to the surface of milk cartons and can breed bacteria in the water. The best container for storing drinking water is made of glass, but then glass is breakable and heavy, especially when there is a need to transport the stored water. Old glass jars and vessels may contain lead and should never be chosen for drinking water storage. Second, the drinking water container must be, at all costs, safe and clean. In short, it must be food-grade. Before water is poured into the containers for storage, clean with dishwashing soap and rinse thoroughly with water. FEMA even recommends sanitizing the water container by placing a teaspoon of unscented chlorine bleach per quart of water and making sure that the sanitizing solution is swished throughout the insides of the container. Then rinse with clean water again, ensuring that no remnants of the cleaning solution are left behind. If possible, leave to dry the interior of the storage container before filling it with drinking water. Drinking water, although essentially nonperishable, is best stored in cool dry places and away from direct sunlight. Common sense must also be exercised in arranging water storage containers in locations which are prone to flooding and earthquakes. Food-grade plastic water buckets and water barrels are handy in drinking water storage because they are typically light, portable, and stackable because of their shapes and sizes. To sum up what could be a potential life-saving exercise of water purification and storage in cases of emergency, the American Red Cross outlined thoughtful guidelines in selecting the best drinking water storage containers. The container must be factory-sealed and must be store-bought, not something that was picked up from a dumpster or a garage sale. It must not be breakable and has not contained any type of toxic material prior to being used to store water. Finally, it must not be repurposed from milk cartons or bottles because dairy substances and proteins are fertile bacterial grounds. Most importantly, since the polyethylene plastic of water containers will allow hydrocarbon fumes to seep through, they must be kept in locations away from pesticide materials, gasoline, and kerosene. The storage of water for drinking, especially in disaster-prone areas (like those that are prone to typhoons, earthquakes, winter storms, and flooding) might spell the difference between survival and death.