Archive for the 'bottled water' Category

Valley water agencies look at farming contamination

Published on 05/05/2012 in agriculture, bottled water, contaminated water, groundwater and water filtering. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Retrieved from: carbon-based-ghg.blogspot.com

“California failed to protect the San Joaquin Valley from fertilizer, dairy and septic contamination now threatening drinking water from thousands of wells, says the leader of the responsible state agency.

“But Pamela Creedon, executive officer of the Central Valley Regional Water Control Board, says her agency is working on ways to make up for the past.

” ‘We have more than 50% of our resources focused in groundwater programs, and we’re expanding our efforts,’ said Creedon.

“Creedon spoke in Clovis on Thursday after a University of California at Davis researcher described his study on the Valley’s vast water contamination from nitrates, which he linked mostly to farm fertilizing and dairy practices in the past.

“The study says the problem coming from millions of farming acres is getting worse. It suggests many changes, including added fertilizer fees to raise money for water cleanups in many communities. Most rural Valley towns are completely dependent on wells for tap water.

“Many people in small Tulare County towns and other places in the Valley buy bottled water, fearing the nitrate-laced water from their taps will harm their children.”

Read More: Chicago Tribune

Chippie Kislik

Mass. town bans sale of plastic water bottles

Published on 04/26/2012 in bottled water, contaminated water and policy. 0 Comments

Photo retrieved from: www.sustainabilityresourcecenter.ucsd

“Residents of the historic Massachusetts town of Concord (CON’-curd) have voted to ban the sale of single-serve plastic water bottles at local stores.

The ban on sales of bottles of a liter or less passed at Wednesday’s town meeting 403-364.

Supporters say it’s the most sweeping water bottle ban passed by any municipality in the nation and will cut down on pollution and limit exposure to toxic chemicals.

Opponents say singling out one form of plastic is ridiculous and the ban will harm local businesses. Opponents also point out that recycled plastic bottles can be used to make dozens of useful items.

Stores could be fined up to $50 for violating the ban.

The ban is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, pending approval from the state attorney general’s office.”

Read more: boston.com

lily victoria

Bottled Water Industry Launches Marketing Battle Against Tap Water

Published on 04/09/2012 in bottled water, greenwashing and tap water. 0 Comments

Photo retrieved from: www.triplepundit.com

“Many people are finally waking up to the fact that pre-packaged bottled water is just not necessary. It has even been banned in places like Grand Canyon National Park. Over 90 U.S. universities have either banned or plan to ban bottled water on their campuses, according to the Ecologist, and over 100 U.S. towns and cities have also banned most forms of bottled water.

The bottled water industry is not taking this backlash lying down. Instead it has launched a marketing battle “to turn the public back onto plastic bottled water,” as the Ecologist puts it. In the U.S., the battle is being waged by the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) trade association. The IBWA even launched a YouTube video against what it terms the “anti-bottled water activism on college campuses.” The video, titled, Student Activism: 101, paints college campus bottled water bans as a matter of “freedom of choice.”

Read more: Triple Pundit

 

lily victoria

Mexico’s Water War

Published on 02/23/2012 in bottled water, greenwashing, policy, products and tap water. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Photo retrieved from: www.petrecycling.com

“It isn’t just tourists who won’t drink the water in Mexico. It’s nearly everyone, making the country one of the most valuable markets in the world for beverage companies. Mexicans are the world’s biggest drinkers of soda, putting away 166 liters of the bubbly stuff per person in 2010, and of bottled water, chugging down 248 liters per capita in 2011, according to preliminary estimates from the Beverage ­Marketing Corp. The latter figure is more than double Americans’ annual consumption of 110 liters.

With growth in the soda segment flattening out, in part due to government antiobesity campaigns (soda sales have been banned in schools), the growth and competition are in water, where market leader Danone is fighting it out with Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

“Soft drinks are no longer such a great business in Mexico,” says Ana Trulin, an analyst in Mexico City with Euromonitor. “Water is the big profitmaker.”

Analysts project Mexican bottled-water sales will grow to $13 billion by 2015, up from $9 billion in 2011, surpassing the U.S. to become the world’s largest market.”

Read more: Forbes

 

lily victoria

Can Coca-Cola Keep Growing?

Published on 02/09/2012 in aquatic ecosystems, bottled water, contaminated water, displacement of people, glaciers, greenwashing, groundwater, management, privatization and water shortage. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Retrieved from: Wikipedia

“Coca-Cola is a $156 billion nonalcoholic-beverage kingpin that sold more than $46 billion worth of drinks around the world in 2011. As if it needs underscoring, that’shuge. So when it comes to the future for Coca-Cola, is growth still possible?

“If you tuned into Coke’s fourth-quarter earnings release yesterday, you know that there was still growth to be had in the past year, at least. Comparable earnings per share — which adjusts the tally mainly for oddball adjustments from its bottler acquisition — increased 10% for the year to $3.84.

“There’s been no recession for Coke. In the chart below, you can see that earnings did dip in 2008, but when we consider the total earnings growth over the past five years, it’s clear that the Coca-Cola juggernaut is one that’s not easily knocked off course. 

anImageSource: S&P Capital IQ. 2010 earnings adjusted for gains from bottler acquisition. 

“If we break that total growth down to an average annual figure, we can say that Coke is still growing earnings at a clip of better than 11% per year. To deliver that kind of growth on a relatively consistent basis is no small matter no matter who you are, but it’s even more impressive when you’re a company the size of Coke.

“The company hasn’t been shy about deploying some of its ample cash flow to grow through acquisitions. Of note, in 2007 the company ponied up $4.2 billion to buy Vitaminwater maker Glaceau. More recently, the company took over the North American operations of bottler Coca-Cola Enterprises.”
Read more: Daily Finance
sammykayed

Grand Canyon to ban bottled water sales

Published on 02/08/2012 in aquatic ecosystems, bottled water and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

The Colorado River flows through the Grand Canyon on the Hualapai Indian Reservation near Peach Springs, Arizona May 6, 2011. REUTERS/Joshua Lott

Retrieved from: Reuters

“The Grand Canyon will soon ban the sale of bottled water, responding to concerns that empty plastic bottles scattered around the park are spoiling views of the natural wonder.

“The National Park Service has approved a plan that would eliminate the sale of bottled water within 30 days, after nearly $290,000 was spent to install 10 water stations inside the park. Visitors can use the stations to refill their own water bottles, which they can tote in from the outside.

“Park concessionaires, who can still sell other bottled beverages, chipped in with another three water stations.

“Our parks should set the standard for resource protection and sustainability,” John Wessels, the park service’s intermountain region director, said in a statement.

“Some 4.5 million tourists visit the Grand Canyon each year, and officials worry about litter found on the rim and inner canyon spoiling the park and marring its views. They estimate the disposable bottles account for 20 percent of the park’s waste and 30 percent of its recyclables.”

Read more: Reuters

sammykayed

Parks Chief Sets Conditions for Plastic Bottle Bans

Published on 12/16/2011 in bottled water and products. 0 Comments Tags: .

Retrieved from: www.banthebottle.net

“The director of the National Park Service, after blocking Grand Canyon National Park’s attempt to ban the sale of small plastic water bottles, will now allow such bans, but under a restrictive set of conditions, the park service announced on Thursday.

Jon Jarvis, the director, issued a policy directive to all parks this week requiring that any park contemplating such a ban comply with a detailed checklist calling for written reports on issues like the amount of waste to be eliminated and the effect on the revenue of concessionaires and nonprofit groups that support the parks. The policy also requires parks planning a ban to consult with the park service’s public health office on its potential impact.”

Read more: New York Times

lily victoria

Bottled water companies target minorities

Published on 11/26/2011 in bottled water, peak water and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: , .

“New York, New York - Water is the lifeblood of this planet, whose inhabitants are watching its accelerated spiral into crisis mode even as they struggle to address the issues and lifestyles that are stretching the earth’s resources thin.

Outwardly, the global water crisis appears straightforward – people simply consume too much water. A key factor in this spiral is the fact that water has been morphing from a natural resource into a marketable – and costly – product, experts and reports have shown.

Exploring different aspects of the global water crisis, from privatisation of water to corporations marketing to minorities, reveals that water – as a human right, as a product, as a natural resource – is firmly entangled with a host of issues in areas, including public health.

By 2025, 1.8 billion people will live in areas with absolute water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world’s population – projected to reach eight billion by then – will be under stress conditions. Some 1.4 billion currently lack access to safe water.

Humans consume water at a rate more than twice that of population growth, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). In 60 per cent of European cities with a population greater than 100,000, groundwater is used more quickly than it is replenished, said the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Yet even though humans consume more water than is sustainable, some would say that people do not drink enough water, and when they do, they’re often being tricked into doing so.”

Read More: Al Jazeera

 

jenna cavelle

Bottled water ban ‘stupid’

Published on 10/09/2011 in bottled water and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Drying up ... A vending machine on university campus.

Retrieved from: The Age

“THE peak body for the bottled water industry has called the Victorian College of the Arts’ decision to ban the sale of bottled water ”stupid”.

“Last week, the VCA announced it would stop selling bottled water at its Southbank campus in a bid to reduce its environmental footprint. The university has installed 10 new drinking fountains instead.

“The Australasian Bottled Water Institute’s chief executive, Geoff Parker, said the ban would not only create a ”nanny campus” but questioned the environmental benefits of the decision.

”If they are serious about reducing their environmental footprint, they probably need to ban soft drinks and coffee and just about every other commercial beverage other than bottled water, which has one of the lowest environmental footprints of any beverage,” Mr Parker said.”

Read more: The Age

 

chrismorrow

Colleges moving away from plastic water bottles

Published on 09/15/2011 in bottled water, management and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Retrieved from: USA today

“On a warm recent Friday afternoon, College of Saint Benedict junior Emily Martin stopped to fill up her reusable water bottle at a new water station in the campus library.

“Stations like this one — drinking fountains with an extra spigot to make filling a reusable bottle quicker and easier — have been part of life here since the central Minnesota college banned the sale of plain bottled water in August. The 31 fountains, known as hydration stations, are now the only way to get drinking water on campus.

“They’re just a lot more convenient than the regular drinking fountains,” Martin said. “They go faster, people aren’t waiting in line as much, and they don’t spill all over the place.”

“Saint Benedict is following a growing trend of colleges and universities banning the sale of plain bottled water as part of a move toward sustainability.

“According to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), 14 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada have campus-wide bans, while another dozen or so have bans that cover a portion of campus.

“The Minnesota College Republicans protested the ban on campus Tuesday by handing out plastic water bottles to passers-by. In a written statement, the group said the policy takes away students’ free choice.”

Read more: USA today

sammykayed