A group of students at St. Thomas University in Fredericton is pushing to have bottled water banned on campus.

New students at St. Thomas University were given reusable water bottles last week as a part of a campaign to get them to stop at a water fountain instead of a vending machine.

Now Ella Henry, a St. Thomas University student and a member of the Coalition for Bottled Water-Free Campuses, said going bottle-free isn't just better for the environment; it's also healthier.

"We've got great municipal water here in Fredericton, and bottled water plants are tested maybe once every three to five years whereas municipal water is tested several times a day," Henry said.

Jeffery Carleton, the director of communications for the university, said the coalition has yet to raise its concerns over the future of bottled water to the university's administration.

Before the university starts pursuing any ban on bottled water, Carleton said he'd like the group to sit down with the administration and outline their position.

"We want to consult with the student union, and we also want to consult with the students in residence because there would be a lot of people impacted by this," Carleton said.

Banning bottled water on campus isn't as easy as it may seem, according to the university's spokesman.

The university has a contract with Pepsi to provide beverage vending machines and removing bottled water would require renegotiating that contract.

"Some pretty significant benefits accrue to the university from this agreement," Carleton said. "We get funds from the agreement that we use to support a lot of student activities.