#stopnestle

4/19/2017 - Detroit Free Press

The request has prompted vehement public opposition, with many particularly outraged that Nestle gets the groundwater for nothing more than a $200 per year DEQ permit.

"That is a the biggest rip-off of a public resource I've ever heard," said Marc Smith, conservation director for the nonprofit National Wildlife Federation in Ann Arbor.

The additional water requested by Nestle is part of a $36-million expansion announced last October for its Ice Mountain bottling operations in Stanwood. The addition of two water-bottling lines is expected to add 20 jobs to the plant, which employs more than 250 people.

DEQ spokeswoman Melody Kindraka confirmed that the state's consideration of the request to withdraw additional groundwater is not affected by the Osceola Township Planning Commission permit denial.

4/19/2017 - Detroit Free Press

“The Osceola Township Planning Commission on Tuesday night denied granting Nestle Waters North America the permit for the pipeline booster station at Spring Hill Camp. It's part of the company's proposal to withdraw up to 400 gallons per minute from a well in Osceola County for its Ice Mountain bottling operation in Stanwood.

The commission said it felt Nestle didn't demonstrate that the proposal had the required public necessity and public convenience for the local permit.“

4/13/2017 - Michigan Radio

“We need the DEQ to step up and do its job and when I’m talking to people out in the hallway they’re telling me ‘well this isn’t our responsibility, you’ve got to go to your elected officials.’ No, you have been entrusted with this responsibility from the federal government and you need to do your job,” Orduno said.

At that point the crowd got to its feet, shouting “Do your job! Do your job!”

“Okay, thank you, people. We hear you. We hear you. We hear you,” said MDEQ’s Phil Roycraft, who works at the Cadillac office.

MDEQ says it cannot consider public support for or opposition to a permit when making a decision. The agency has received more than 50,000 comments on the proposed permit so far.

4/13/2017 - MLive

The Flint water crisis loomed large Wednesday night over a state public hearing where almost 500 people gathered to weigh in on whether Nestle should be able to draw more groundwater to bottle and sell.

"The injustice of this situation could not be starker," said Liz Kirkwood, executive director of For Love of Water (FLOW). "At the same time the people of Flint are forced to drink bottled water, the state is considering authorizing a water grab for a $200 fee."

...

Because of the amount of water Nestle now wants, it triggered a permit under Section 17 of Michigan's Safe Drinking Water Act of 1976 - a provision added due to Nestle's activities in the early 2000s.

"This is wrong -- when this act was written in 1976 it was never intentioned that water would be up for sale," said Bill Cobbs, Democratic candidate for governor.

...

But two groups - FLOW and Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation - disagree. FLOW's team analyzed Nestle's application and concluded that it doesn't use existing hydrology, soil or environmental information and instead uses computer modeling that assumes more water in the system that exists.

Should Nestle increase its water consumption from the Chippewa and Twin creeks, wetlands will be drained and the trout that swim in the two creeks will be impacted, FLOW found.

...

Rhonda Huff, who lives on Chippewa Creek, said she's seen water levels there drop since Nestle began drawing water. She urged the DEQ to stop looking out for corporate interests.

"The DEQ is not supposed to stand for the Department of Economic Quality," Huff said.

Many of those against the permit application viewed it as the privatization of a public resource - and stood up for Flint residents who had to buy bottled water.

"It troubles me that with a $200 permit Nestle can get billions of dollars worth of profit and puts nothing back into the community or into the state treasury or into Flint," said James Howard, an attorney from Grand Rapids. "That seems to be an issue of justice. I know that's not what the DEQ is making its decisions on -- but I think the people of Michigan need to say to our leaders: this isn't right."