If you extracted all the BPA, the container would disintegrate. BPA is a constituent that helps keep the container molecularly bound.

No. Polycarbonate is a polymer, which means that it's basically a repeating chain of smaller chemical compounds. In this case, that smaller compound is BPA so you can't just boil it away because that's what the bottle is essentially made of. Put another way, that Nalgene bottle in your hand is basically one big hunk of BPA.

Heating polycarbonate just makes it break down faster and leech into any water or food next to it. So does physical damage like being knocked around or scratched. The age of the polycarbonate also affects the leeching rate. Actually, those of you who have been using the same Nalgene for many, many years, it's likely that it is leeching far more BPA than a brand new bottle--if you're worried about such things.

Thanks for the explanations, benjammin and Arney. I didn't realize that BPA was the main ingredient.

My wonder is long term sotrage bottles, say one of those big relaince jugs. Lets say _IF_ they use BPA and _IF_ BPA does in fact turn out to be harmful our stores water sits a long time in jugs so it has a long time to leach into the water.

Along those same lines, I wonder if residual BPA can be removed by our filters.

Those containers aren't made of polycarbonate. They're high density polyethylene (HDPE), that translucent, somewhat soft plastic that they make things like bicycle water bottles out of. HDPE is generally considered safe.

Not sure about this, but one article indicated that the bpa plastics were labeled on the bottom as recycling #7. Most of the disposable plastic bottles I have seen are labeled #1. Recycling the disposables as replacements for bpa-bearing vessels may actually be a solution to the BPA problem.

Disposable plastic containers are indeed a blight on the world. BPA might be a blight on the world. But they seem to be different blights. The stainless steel bottles are fine, but spendy, which represents a different bottom line.

I do wear tinfoil hats, occasionally.

Better check to make sure that the tinfoil contains nothing harmful.

For long term water storage, I've always preferred glass or ceramic jugs.

Actually, it's aluminum foil, and aluminum has been linked to Alzheimers. Too, it contains me, and I have been linked to all kinds of harmful foolishness. Alzheimers? Bah, I laugh at...something...can't remember what...