> This is because our tap water has chlorine in it. For the water to go ‘bad’ because of bacterial contamination it needs:...
What you say is quite true for a bacterial contamination. Algae is a different matter altogether.
Here in the Waitakere Ranges (NZ) our water is Chlorinated, just like yours. It is also amongst the purest tap water in the world (it has won awards internationally). Nearly chemically pure.
If you bottle it and leave it in the sun, in a few months it will begin to grow algae.
Algae needs only sunlight to make its own food.
Your water in NYC is highly unlikely to be as clean as ours. So I would not dismiss out-of-hand that algae could grow in your bottled tap water in a matter of a few days, if you left it in the sunlight.
That’s the price you pay for living in the Big City.
my goodness, doesn’t anyone remember their high school biology?
Yes, green plants use photosynthesis to grow, however, algae still follow the rules when it comes to reproduction.
There MUST be a source of carbohydrates and trace minerals.
C H O P K N S Ca and Fe are the basic building blocks of life.
Take away any one of them and cells, both plant and animal, cannot survive.
Algae may grow to a very low extant as some cells die, some others may use the now free materials but after a short time, senescence will take place and further growth is not possible. You will not get a freakin’ algal bloom in a sealed container!
and I don’t live in NYC thank God!
Over and out! I’m going to get that water bottle out of my golf bag and have a big swig!
Actually, NYC's tap water is among the best in the world. It's piped in from upstate reservoirs, not drawn from the Hudson. As of last year, NYC was one of only a few cities in the US that wasn't required to filter its water before treating it.