Comments on: In the "One Small Step…" Department: Nestle Abandons Pumping Plans in Michigan

By: nestle water

nestle water — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:25:37 +0000

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By: Clay

Clay — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:19:50 +0000

Score one for Michigan. At least the Muskegon and White rivers will not dry up! At least not right away. This is rather surprising to me due to the state of the economy in Michigan. I believe we rank 50th out of 50 states. Although I hate to say I am doing quite well! Overall jobs are becoming scarce around here and businesses are buttoning up and heading for Mexico and China. Why can’t Nestle go to China and pump thier water or Mexico for that matter?????

By: Tom Chandler

Tom Chandler — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 18:25:47 +0000

Will: Many in McCloud favor the Nestle contract because of the jobs promised, though in other places the employment hasn’t appeared as promised.

Also, there are significant questions about how the contract was negotiated (with the McCloud Services district as there is no city council).

The district “approving” the contract at the end of a single public meeting in front of a few surprised meeting goers.

This is a recurring theme (secret negotiations) with Nestle projects, and one wonders why that keeps happening.

The terms of the contract couldn’t be less favorable to the town, and it’s clear that Nestle will do whatever it takes to hold onto this hugely rapacious deal (rather than renegotiate the deal even after it was struck down by several courts).

By: Jessica

Jessica — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 17:54:05 +0000

AND the water company customers were the ones shouldering the costs of drilling that well in the first place!! So.. who’s recouping the benefits of Nestle/Poland Spring’s pumping.. not the customers of the water company.. no.. the superintendent of the water company and the hydrogeologist for Nestle/Poland Spring are 50/50 shareholders in the company that buys the water from the water company, (did I mention that the president of the water company is the father of the superintendent?? check out this article in the Maine Sunday Telegram last week titled “Water deal too sweet?”… http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/business/stories/070401cover.html)

Stay tuned… there is more to follow…. But the story is profiled in the introduction to the book “Water Follies” by Robert Glennon…..

By: Jessica

Jessica — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 17:47:14 +0000

But in Maine, the situation has already occurred with a local water company. The town had no water in Jan. 2004, while the Nestle/Poland Spring trucks rolled out of town for days. And while Nestle rolled out of town, pumping directly from the town’s water supply, from the spring well that the people traditionally got their water from, the town was under a boil order order for days, trucking water in cattle watering tanks to the local nursing homes and the school. Who got the priority there????? Doesn’t look like the people did……..

By: Will

Will — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 17:12:16 +0000

“[I]n the event of a drought, Nestle’s pumping operation actually has priority over water for McCloud’s own citizens.”

That’s disgusting. However, the contract must have its defenders outside of Nestle – it is, after all, a cantract (although the non-Nestle party may very well have been hoodwinked – I’m certainly open to that). Does anyone have a link to the actual text of the contract?

Thanks, Will

By: Jessica

Jessica — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 16:23:40 +0000

Stay tuned… The battle here in Maine will be coming to a head this week when Nestle sues the people in Supreme Court. The case is being heard on Tuesday, April 10th. Nestle vs the People….. Let’s put our collective energies on the people’s side, against those 35,000 trucks in a rural residential quiet neighborhood….

Update to follow.. Maybe, just maybe, the people CAN prevail… One can only hope..