The evil bastards at Nestle pulled a fast one in Michigan, acting once again like the sleazy amoral corporate stereotype so popular in the movies. The following was lifted from Michigan’s BLACK BEAR SPEAKS blog:
The DEQ (ED: Department of Environmental Quality in Michigan) approved Nestlé’s “request for determination“, pumping 70 million gallons of spring water yearly from Twin and Chippewa creeks in Osceola County near Evart would not have an adverse impact. This came after only a 3-week public comment period after the DEQ and Nestle went public with the proposed decision on Christmas Eve.
Although the DEQ announced the public comment period would be extended until March 15, 2007, this week’s DEQ decision ignored the extended comment period. Apparently Nestle refused to waive the deadline for the DEQ’s decision as required by last year’s amendments to Michigan’s water laws.
Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation – leading the fight against Nestle – relied on the extended time period and retained experts to provide meaningful analyses, only to be stabbed by the DEQ’s premature decision.
The DEQ largely ignored comments, particularly those related to the effects on flows and levels of the headwaters of the two trout streams. Nestle and DEQ’s decision used selected measurements of the stream which may have missed the primary area of effects and adverse impacts to a bountiful brook trout fishery.
Source: BLACK BEAR SPEAKS
Fair play? Concern for the environment or public comment?
Not much in evidence.
Instead, what we’re witness to is the kind of corporate sleaze which – were this the movies – would win Nestle a visit from some rabid, heavily armed martial arts star bent on revenge.
If only this was the movies.
Nestle claims that it is a “good corporate citizen.†Despite the company’s claims to the contrary, a trial court and the Court of Appeals found pumping caused substantial harm to the stream and wetlands in Mecosta County, and the company recently mounted an attack on the heart of Michigan environmental laws to block citizens’ rights to maintain lawsuits to prevent such harm from happening.
Sadly – in this reality - this is the kind of thing amoral corporations do – and profit from.
The kicker? Nestle’s tagline is “Good Food. Good Life.”
Perhaps ”The ethics of sociopathic crocodiles” would be more apt.
I’m going to suggest just that to the Nestle USA spokesperson, which an enterprising blogger might discover could be e-mailed at: laurie.macdonald@us.nestle.com
[tags]nestle, nestle sucks, osceola county, michigan, deq, cheating scuzzes, black bear speaks, environment, water, [/tags]
Tom,
it’s time to give up my coffee-mate and taster’s choice when I go-lite. I took a quick survey of the rest of the Nestle and General Mills brands, just to be sure that my boycott is a clean sweep.
It’s got me thinking that the first retirement trip I plan, will be called the ‘fish it before it’s gone tour’.
Mark Latham(Quote)
Now how about an address for DEQ?
Snowbug(Quote)
Here’s the DEQ Web site (the page containing the determination).
Since they short-circuited the public comment period, there’s no listing on the “Public Comment” section. It’s unclear how much room the DEQ had to maneuver, especially in light of the new state law.
What is clear is that Nestle rushed the process and short-circuited public comment because they stood to make more money that way.
I wonder if this one’s headed for the courts.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
There is a lot of information available on Nestle’s activities in Michigan on the “Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation” website located at http://www.savemiwater.org/
Activists and residents of McCloud need to know that they do not stand alone.
Jerome Alicki(Quote)
This is a huge problem in Michigan, and quite the controversy. Locals of the area (Stanwood, MI. to be more precise) are split. Half are outdoorsmen and want them gone the other half is employed by “Ice Mountain spring water” (do not purchase this brand). This is a relatively poor area aside from the vacationers and those retired in Canadian Lakes. But there is documented proof of marshlands receeding as well as stream levels droping in the surrounding area. Unfortunaly the DEQ does not seem to give a proverbial SHIT!!! Some one(s) is/are making a lot of money in this deal. Although I like bottled water I tend to reuse them and fill with my own purified water. These people are sleazy and are greasing some palms, just can’t figure out who, (Maybe Granholm and her UAW hacks). Well gotta go the black helicopters are circling my house!!!
Clay(Quote)
Damn straight Clay, don’t buy “Ice Mountain.” There has been a boycott of “Ice Mountain” in Michigan already that started several years ago and continues.
Thanks for blogging about this issue. We need to start a national movement against Nestle, the blogosphere is a great place to start. We can change the way Nestle and other big water corporations operate in Michigan and California if bloggers join in and voice their opinions.
Jerome Alicki(Quote)
Damn it Tom, don’t just tell me the problem, tell me what I can do to help! Nestle must be stopped, by any means available. I don’t have a lot of dough, so I can’t help out too much that way, but I want in on this fight!
(I apologize for the snarkiness)
Kevin(Quote)
It is important to note that Nestle is international and that the same tactics being used here in Michigan and and in California are also being used in South America.
Since we haven’t been able to stop Nestle with the Michigan courts – only slow them down a bit- we have to stop them in the court of public opinion. So, Blog Blog BLOG! We may not have the backing of the legal system, but we can get the backing of the blogger community and through them the larger national and international environmental organizations. Never underestimate the power of the written word.
Don’t buy bottled water unless absolute necessary. Also, if the state you live in has a bottle deposit for alcohol and soda, write your representative and encourage him or her to expand the bottle bill to include plastic water bottles.
This is a long, slow fight – a slog through the muck – but in the end it’s all worth it.
Jerome Alicki(Quote)
(1) Bottled water is no better than your tap water in most cases.
(2) It’s my understanding that the issue here is the word “spring” – they need to be within a certain a radius of a spring or similar groundwater feature in order to put that word on the label… They could just say “Ice Mountain Water” or something like that, and fill the bottles with purified standard well water.
Just stop drinking the damn stuff… all of it. If you need proof – send a few samples to a lab for comparison – you’ll see no significant difference.
MN Justin(Quote)
The auto industry is in the toilet and MI has raised taxes so much that every other business is hitting the road. As a result, almost no environmental degredation is too alarming if it might help employ a couple of folks and Nestle has never shied away from that kind of thing. Governor Granholm is kind of a MILF, but she needs to recognize and protect the great resources in the state. A lot of folks head up that way often and drop big bucks because of them.
Teh Wind Knot(Quote)
If you use one of those water containers with the filter that you fill up with tap water and let the water go through the filter (Brita, etc.) then your tap water will be just as good as the expensive bottled stuff.
If you reuse your empty water bottles and refill them with filtered water, you’ll save yourself a bunch of $$$ too.
Brian
Heddon17(Quote)
The McCloud Watershed Council is probably the best resource to visit for news about Nestle’s latest depravities in Northern California.
Nestle is a slick operation. Their concern for the community is pretty much nil (they’re planning to run several hundred trucks a day through McCloud), and believe me, they don’t care what happens to the McCloud River or Squaw Creek. The just don’t.
Also realize this: they’re in it for the long haul. They’ve had a fulltime person on the ground in McCloud for several years now, and they put their sizable financial resources behind a slate of pro-plant candidates for the McCloud Service District.
How much of a chance did the no-plant candidates truly have?
Tom Chandler(Quote)
They definitely don’t give a rat’s ass about what will happen to the McCloud community or the McCloud and Squaw Creek watersheds.
Several hundred trucks a day going in and out of the McCloud area will make that stretch of hwy 89 one of the most dangerous sections of hwy in CA. Especially during the winter months.
Once those trucks start rolling it will just be a matter of time until one of them is involved in a fatal accident with one or more other vehicles……
Brian
Heddon17(Quote)
That truck bit boggles the mind. Hwy 89 was also a cycling route for riders looking to get away from the Shasta Valley, yet I can’t imagine anyone would go near the thing with that kind of semi traffic.
Hell, I can’t imagine driving my Bronco on that road with that kind of semi traffic.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
And, oh yeah – you know how all that truck traffic will crumble McCloud’s roads?
Nestle’s “deal” says they aren’t responsible for any infrastructure (e.g. – the roads).
Tom Chandler(Quote)
I wonder how many of the trucks will be going south on 89 towards Burney on their way to Reno, etc??
That section of 89 south of McCloud to a few miles north of Lake Britton is bad enough during the winter-early spring and I can’t imagine driving that section with that sort of increase in Semi Traffic.
If a high percentage of their trucks will be going that way, then going down I-5, then up 299 to Baum Lk would be the safer option. Even though it would add an hour to the drive each way.
Brian
Heddon17(Quote)
No matter where they go, those trucks are going to grind Hwy 89 to dust, along with anyone unfortunate enough to get in the way.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
Caltrans is more than slightly opposed to the project due to the trucks traffic and Nestle’s lack of responsibility for and infrastructure improvements.
Kevin(Quote)
Kevin;
Thanks for the heads up on the Caltrans opposition. Caltrans hasn’t come up in the Nestle discussion locally.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
I have worked at nestle for a long time and I could tell you things to get them shut down. They have maggots on the production lines and everything. Andd that ain’t all. It’s been said that somebody put shit on their hands and then went back to work. How disgusting.
John Doe(Quote)