Great Lakes Compact with One Large Hole

The Great Lakes Compact that passed last week may have left a gaping hole that allows the lakes' water to be used for bottled water purposes. Rep. Bart Stupak had tried to stop the bill from passing because of the loophole, but others pooh-poohed him. He may have been on to something...

from the Record-Eagle:

The loophole allows water to be exported outside the Great Lakes basin in containers smaller than 5.7 gallons or in larger containers if the water is incorporated into other products; examples include steel or beer.

China - Clean Water for the Elite

In a disturbing article about the milk scare in China, InsideBayArea.com reports:

BEIJING—While China grapples with its latest tainted food crisis, the political elite are served the choicest, safest delicacies. They get hormone-free beef from the grasslands of Inner Mongolia, organic tea from the foothills of Tibet and rice watered by melted mountain snow.

Polluted water for the people's agriculture, clean water for the elite. Those with money and power usually can access better products, but water is sacred.

Man Made Wetlands as Water Filter

The Woonsocket Call reports on Smithfield, Rhode Islands efforts to create a man made wetland as a waste filter.

NORTH SMITHFIELD — The town is looking to undertake a quarter-million dollar project to prevent pollution to the Branch River caused by stormwater runoff.

Nature creates wetlands for free....

Massive Moosehead Lake Real Estate Development

The Kennebec Journal reports:

State regulators on Wednesday endorsed Plum Creek's historic development plan for nearly 1,000 house lots, two large resorts and hundreds of thousands of acres of land conservation in the Moosehead Lake region.

Beyond water for drinking, bottling, agriculture and industry, there is water for recreation and there is an entire industry of recreational boat makers who want to keep it that way. This battle is probably not over, I'll follow closely.

Plum Creek began this project 4 years ago. We were at the height of the real estate boom and gas was $1.80 a gallon. Will they still have the stomach for this? Will their backers?



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California to Monitor Bottled Water Industry

Slow news day today on the New England water side of things.

Here's an article from the SF Gate about CA legislature getting serious about monitoring bottled water in the state.

Great Lakes Protection Law Passes

Overwhelming majority passes the law, per mlive.com:

GRAND RAPIDS -- The U.S. House today approved the Great Lakes Compact which supporters say will protect the nation's biggest supply of fresh water.

One Michigan Rep tried to stop the vote out of fear of a loophole that allows bottled water to be extracted, but the other leaders feel it's been covered.

More on that from Great Lakes Law.

This is What Makes it so Diffucult....

Ugh.

From Burlington Free Press:

Vermont Pure has donated 15 cases of bottled water each month for a year totalling 4,320 bottles, to Spectrum. This donation will be used by Spectrum’s Street Outreach Team, who go onto the streets of Burlington seven days a week, and hand out free sandwiches and bottled water to homeless youth.

One thing I have to admit, bottled water is incredibly functional in certain situations. But 4,320 bottles. What's the alternative here? At Walmart prices, this is a $475 donation.

"$700-million-plus cleanup that could last decades"

A great retrospective from the Berkshire Eagle on the long term financial and environmental cost of severe river pollution:

Nine years into an estimated $700-million-plus cleanup that could last decades, the river is both adored and dreaded: Anglers catch fish that they dare not eat; boaters canoe and kayak in the water but never swim; and farmers raise crops and animals near it, just outside the polluted floodplain.

This is a part of the legacy of industrial western Mass. How are China's rivers doing? How much will they cost to clean? Can experience here become a business there?

Walmart - 11 cents for a bottle of water

Walmart not helping the situation:

In a piece examining the value shoppers get at dollar stores, 7online finds:

Nestle bottled water
If it's not environmental concerns that are stopping you from drinking a lot of bottled water, it's the price. You used to be able to get bottled water everywhere for much less than a dollar, but now prices have gone up so much that it's hard to justify the purchase. So it's easy to see why people would gravitate to dollar stores to find a bargain. I can get four 16.9 oz. bottles of water for $1 at the dollar store. That's great, but, if you use a lot of bottled water, it's better to buy it by the case.
Wal-Mart often has sales on this brand, selling a case of 24 bottles for $2.65, which means you're only paying 11 cents a bottle, as opposed to 25 cents at the dollar store. Costco sells Nestle bottled water in a case of 35, 16.9 oz. bottles for $4.95 or 14 cents per bottle, a significant savings over the dollar store.

11 cents a bottle. That includes the water, the bottle, the label, the packaging, the delivery, the filtering, the cost of stocking it, with some profit for both Walmart and Nestle.

Shocking.

Shapleigh Votes for Moratorium

The Boston Globe reports:

PORTLAND, Maine—Shapleigh voters, in a setback for bottler Poland Spring, imposed a six-month moratorium Saturday on the testing or large-scale extraction of water.

The vote was 204 to 38.

Maine Water Protests

Maine Today reports:

PORTLAND -- About 50 people turned out for an anti-bottled water protest in Tommy's Park in downtown Portland this afternoon.

The protest was mostly aimed at Poland Springs, which has met resistance in several York County towns this summer after proposing possible drilling on town-owned land.

Shapleigh residence vote this Saturday on the Poland Springs test drilling.

Dissension in the Ranks!

A couple of weeks ago I posted about the creation of the National Hydration council in the UK, an industry group [supply your own opinion on industry groups] for promoting bottled water.

Today, Brand Republic reports that this new group may be causing some trouble in the world of beverage industry groups.

A little drama can be good sometimes.

AP Report "How the health care industry dumps unused drugs into our water"

From Foster's Daily Democrat:

EDITOR'S NOTE — The health care industry is contributing to the contamination of our nation's drinking water supplies by dumping tons of unused drugs annually, an Associated Press investigation finds. First of a two-part series.
By JEFF DONN, MARTHA MENDOZA and JUSTIN PRITCHARD
Associated Press Writers

U.S. hospitals and long-term care facilities annually flush millions of pounds of unused pharmaceuticals down the drain, pumping contaminants into America's drinking water, according to an ongoing Associated Press investigation.

Vermont Pure - 5% increase in Profits

The bottled water industry as a whole is experienceing a slowdown with this economy. However, Vermont Pure just realeased a Statement:

RTT News:

(RTTNews) - Monday, Vermont Pure Holdings Ltd. (VPS: News ), a distributor of bottled water, reported an increase in third-quarter earnings as sales improved from last year.

Kenebec Journal - Letter to the Editor

An interesting view in this letter, if we allow a few corporations to own all the water, we will end up where we are today with the oil companies.

Letter

Forty Percent of Bottled Water Is Tap Water - CBS News

CBS News on the industry. Important distinction between regulatory oversight of Tap water and Bottled water.

Nanotechnology for Water Purification

Greentech Media reports:

“Nanotechnology-based water filtration could deliver completely pure water from any source at vastly reduced energy usage and lower total costs,” said Pergamit.

"The average grubby Mainer uses about 50 gallons of water a day"

Getting real basic on water conservation. I like this guy's attitude and agree with him (I think) that we should always look to conserve first. 50 gallons a day is too much. I'd like to start there.

Anyway, it's another view:

Village Soup

Don't mess with a man's beer....

Note: Having lived in Maine for 4 years. I do not think Maine folks are grubby.

New Hampshire Beaches Receive Grant - $200k

From SeaCoastonline:

With the summer beach season in high gear, EPA’s New England office is awarding a $201,450 grant to help support the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NH DES) Public Beach Inspection Program.

EPA to Update Protection of Ocean Water

The Danbury News-Times:

Beachgoers will be told more about whether it's safe to go in the water under a court settlement between environmentalists and the EPA.

EPA will also be required to study the health risks posed by storm water runoff, the biggest known source of beach pollution.

Announcement of the settlement follows publication of the NRDC's 18th annual beach water quality report, which found that in 2007 U.S. ocean, bay and Great Lakes beaches logged more than 20,000 closing and advisory days, the second-highest number ever.

If the EPA ups the criteria, we will have a lot more than 20,000 closings and advisories. It could be a shock for the beachgoing public. If we go from 20,000 to 40,000 closings and advisories, the public could react by demanding a relaxation of standards.

Hopefully, the public would react in favor of cleaning up the contaminants.

BlackStone River - Worcester Sewage Treatmant

The Worcester Telegram and Gazette reports on sewage treatment and the Blackstone River:

"WORCESTER— The city intends to fight the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the courts, if necessary, over the permit it has issued mandating dramatically lower pollutant limits at the regional sewage treatment plant in Millbury."

"The EPA contends that the Blackstone River, into which the treated sewage is discharged, is one of the most polluted in the state"

Poland Springs vs. Shapleigh, ME- Update

The Portland Press Herald has an update on Poland Springs and Shapleigh. The issue is slightly confusing, but at it's heart is whether or not to let Poland Springs do test drilling. The town puts it to vote in 10 days.

Shockingly, what the town could get paid:

"the company did not want to pay any more than the rate it now pays the state at Range Pond: 0.6 cent per gallon, less transportation costs."

So at most, the town will be paid $1 for 170 gallons of water.

At Stop and Shop's home delivery page, they are selling Poland Springs 1 gallon bottles for $1.39, link.

Now obviously, there are drilling, delivery and filtering costs, Stop and Shop adds a margin on to it, etc....but, it's a long way from $1.39 to $0.006 per gallon. I'd like to see Poland Springs release more info on those costs. Transparency might help the situation. Without more information, the deal just kind of reeks.

Canadian Region Bans Bottled Water

Quick Blurb from the globe and mail:

Waterloo Region bans bottled water from sites

The Canadian Press

September 10, 2008

"Kitchener -- Councillors in Waterloo Region have banned bottled water from regional buildings and events in an effort to promote tap water they contend is a better choice."


The Waterloo region sits between three of the great lakes. They are rich in water, but it sounds like they've had it with the waste that water bottles bring.

In case you're wondering where this is:


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USA Today Book Review: 'Bottlemania'

USA Today reviews a new book on the water business.

"Americans discard 30 billion to 40 billion water bottles a year"

Wow.

Bottled Water Industry Slowdown

Per Brandweek:

"The market for bottled water may be drying up. Despite massive discounting, brands like Aquafina and Poland Spring are experiencing a sales drought unlike any the category has ever seen.

After almost a decade of triple and then double-digit growth, sales volume grew less than 1% for the first half of the year, per Beverage Digest, Bedford Hills, N.Y.

The chief culprit: the economy. Shoppers are less interested in paying for a product that they can get for free."

Oil is down from it's peak. Looks like bottled water is too.

Financial Times - Water as an Investment

The Financial Times provides some thoughts on the future of water as an investment. There are some good concepts to consider for anyone trying to get into water as an investment.

Article

Launch of and Industry Lobby Group - The Natural Hydration Council

PRWeek reports:

"Nestle Waters, Danone and Highland Spring have joined together to launch a new association to lobby on behalf of the bottled water industry.

The Natural Hydration Council (NHC) was launched this week to research and promote the environmental, health and other sustainable benefits of natural bottled water."

"Danone Waters UK & Ireland MD Nick Krzyzaniak said: 'The role of the NHC is to provide consumers with an informed choice on the health and sustainability aspects of naturally sourced water.'"

This sounds like it will be a good non-bias source of information.

NHC's site.

California Water Bank - 9.3 billion?

From Reuters:

"California's 2009 Drought Water Bank will buy water primarily from local water agencies and farmers upstream of the delta and make it available for sale to public and private water systems expecting to run short of water next year."

"Schwarzenegger and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat, have teamed up to promote a $9.3 billion plan to lawmakers that would address the delta's environmental problems while expanding the state's water works."

California is having a bad year. It's housing market is collapsing, the state gov't can't agree on a budget and now this. Assuming 14 million households (per 2006 census) in California, the Gov's proposal works out to about $665 per household.

What if each household were to spend $400 on a more efficient toilet?
What each home bought a $75 rain barrel?
What if every pool had a $200 cover on it to reduce evaporation?

Organic Recycling Clashes with Streams

The Morning Sentinel reports on Winterwood Farm's crisis. Winterwood recycles organic waste through composting. They then sell that compost to garden centers around New England.

They have recently had issues with the DEP concerning high nitrogen run-off into a nearby stream. An ingredient in their compost is shellfish. Shellfish are high in nitrogen which makes for a great fertilizer, but a nasty pollutant when it ends up in streams at high concentrations.

The owner is stuck between a rock and hard place here.

Winterwood Farms website.

We'll have to follow this one. It's a case of a smart environmental business running into an environmental issue.

Flow - The Movie

Flow received high praise at Sundance. It's getting great reviews and will hopefully start meaningful conservations.



Click here for a link to the film's site.

Brockton Power Plant and Drinking Water

Boston.com reports the communities concerns over a 350 megawatt, gas-fired plant proposed for Brockton.

"The millions of gallons of water the company would draw from the Salisbury Plain River to cool its 250-foot smokestack could endanger the West Bridgewater drinking water supply, he said. "I have threatened litigation against the company and the City of Brockton," he said. "The days are long gone where towns view themselves as stand-alone entities.""

Poland Springs Moratorium put to the Ballot

From the Seacoastonline.com

"Selectmen Tuesday voted to include a proposed large-scale water extraction moratorium on the November ballot...Voters will see the proposed moratorium on the November ballot."

Bottled Water Consumption

Great Lakes Law has a great graphic on bottled water importers and exporters.

Poland Springs

Updates from the Morning Sentinel on the Poland Springs Situation.

In the Portland Press Herald, the company threatens to leave the state. This a weak threat. Leaving Maine means huge expenses (losses for management) for Poland Springs and Nestle. Would they leave the springs open for a competitor or a savvy municipal co-op of some sort?

The citizens are in the drivers seat here. They should be contacting other water companies with their terms.