Nestle to allow feds to monitor water withdrawals in central Michigan
Nestlé Waters North America on Wednesday announced it will allow a federal agency to monitor its withdrawals of up to 400 gallons of minute in central Michigan for its bottled water.
In an effort to answer questions about whether withdrawals are straining water supplies, the U.S. Geological Survey has begun collecting and publishing data on groundwater and surface water near an Osceola County well that feeds Nestle’s Ice Mountain bottled water plant in Mecosta County, Nestlé said in a press release.
Last year, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality provoked outrage by approving Nestlé’s request to tap up extract more than 210 million gallons per year from the well. Environmentalists and some local residents fear the increase will strain groundwater supplies and harm wetlands along the Twin and Chippewa Creeks, two Muskegon River tributaries.
“Some have raised questions regarding the impact of our operations on the environment,” Arlene Anderson-Vincent, natural resource manager for Nestlé, said in a statement. “While we are confident in the sustainability of our operations, we have asked a respected, third-party scientific agency to conduct their own monitoring.”
Read more: https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-environment-watch/nestle-allow-feds-monitor-water-withdrawals-central-michigan