The Problem:

Today, more than one billion people around the world do not have access to safe water to drink, and unless something is done, this problem will only get worse. Corporations are exacerbating the global water crisis by turning water into a profit driven commodity, like oil. One of the most visible examples of this is bottled water. Bottled water corporations are threatening local control of water supplies in communities across the U.S. and around the world. Nestlé is the largest bottled water corporation in the world, with over 70 brands sold in 130 countries.

From California to Michigan to Maine, Nestlé is interfering in local, democratic decision-making over water.  In California, Nestlé is seeking control of water from the springs of Mount Shasta, and negotiated a backroom deal in which it would pay 1/64 of a cent per gallon for the next half a century, while selling it back to the public at thousands of times the price. The Concerned McCloud Citizens successfully challenged Nestlé in court on the grounds that Nestlé failed to submit an environmental impact statement but Nestlé brought the case to an appeals court to overturn the verdict. 

In Michigan, Nestlé is aggressively seeking control of water in the Great Lakes basin, which contains almost a quarter of the world's freshwater resources. Nestlé currently operates six wells and one bottling plant in the state, extracting millions of gallons of water every year, and continues to search for more well sites, often in sensitive watershed areas. In 2003, The Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation (MCWC) brought Nestle to court. The County Circuit Court judge ruled in their favor – that Nestlé’s actions were likely to narrow streams, expose mud flats and reduce flow levels. Pumping was ordered to a halt. This didn’t stop Nestlé, which appealed the case to the Supreme Court of Michigan, ultimately arguing that MCWC and other citizen groups had no right to sue to protect local water resources. Though stretched thin, the MCWC continues to carry on their struggle to put water resources back under local control.

In Maine, Nestlé operates at least six wells and two bottling plants under the Poland Spring label and is hoping to expand its operations.  Local residents in some communities are concerned that Nestlé will get priority access to the same water that feeds their local water utility and that Nestlé’s extraction will adversely impact local ecosystems and wells. In response to a community group’s attempt to tax Nestlé’s bottled water within the state, Nestlé gave over $218,000 to a political action committee called Maine Citizens Against Taxing Water that opposed the initiative and waged an aggressive media and public relations campaign to discredit the community group. 

There are many more stories to tell about Nestlé’s water abuses in the U.S. and around the world. As Nestlé continues to expand its bottled water operations and profit from communities’ water resources, we must join together to support communities who are struggling to maintain control over their water.  
What you can do:
 
Join people around the world and resist the attempts by corporations to dictate who has water and who doesn't. Right now, Corporate Accountability International's "Think Outside the Bottle” campaign raises awareness among the U.S. public of the dangerous reality behind the image of bottled water and pressures the corporations that profit from it.

Take action today and join this growing movement challenging the bottled water industry and its irresponsible and dangerous actions. Click here to send your letter to Nestlé today.

Photo: Mt. Shasta in McCloud, CA where the community is fighting Nestlé's plans to build a bottling plant.