Water

Zoe Cormier, February 5th, Axis of Eco - The first Public Eye Award for Greenwash handed out in Davos last week was unprecedented. Not only was it the first such award handed out in the Swiss city for false environmental claims, but it was also the first ever Public Eye Award for the recipient: the United Nations.

Joe Cressy, Polaris Institue, December 2, 2009 - Exactly one year ago today (December 2, 2008) the City of Toronto became the largest city in the world to pass a comprehensive ban on bottled water, setting off a wave of backlash against bottled water that continues today. Since Toronto’s decision many news articles have been written, municipal resolutions passed, university clubs formed, and stainless steel bottles sold. To put it bluntly, the last 12 months have not been kind to the big three bottled water manufacturers Nestlé, Coca-Cola, and Pepsi, whose bottled water sales are down while the number of bans continues to increase. Finally, after years of steady bottled water growth, the past year has demonstrated strong public support for the reemergence of the tap.

So where exactly does bottled water stand in Canada right now?

For Immediate Release:

Environmentalists and University Students Launch “Message in a Bottle” Campaign in Support

TORONTO, October 29, 2009 – Today NDP MPP Peter Tabuns (Toronto-Danforth) submitted a new Private Members Bill – Bottled Water Spending Act, 2009 – to restrict government spending on bottled water. If passed, the Bill would make Ontario the first province in Canada to restrict bottled water.

At a press conference to announce the Bill, environmentalists joined with university students to launch a new “Message in a Bottle” campaign in support of its passage. The campaign kicked off with the delivery of 107 empty bottles of Nestle Pure Life stuffed with a message to every MPP.

Paul Gallagher, The Observer, October 4, 2009 - London may soon follow in the footsteps of Bundanoon, the Australian town that last week banned bottled water and set up drinking fountains for thirsty locals.

The capital's first water stations will be set up this month in a move that could have serious repercussions for the £1.5bn-a-year bottled water industry, with companies finding it increasingly difficult to justify their carbon footprint as the quality of tap water improves.

Thames Water, Britain's largest privatised water company, with 13.6 million customers, has had talks with the Greater London Authority and Transport for London to install water machines in the capital. In the first trial, Hydrachills will be installed at Hammersmith bus station and at the Tower Bridge museum. The machines can fill bottles of up to 500ml with chilled water for a 20p charge. All proceeds will be donated to Waste Watch, a charity working to change the way people use natural resources.

Valentine Low, The Guardian, September 24, 2009 - When the first public drinking fountain was unveiled in London 150 years ago, a large crowd gathered at St Sepulchre’s Church at Snow Hill to witness an engineering marvel that for the first time would provide the city’s poor with cold, clean, fresh water (and, the authorities hoped, would also keep the toiling masses out of the pub).

A rather smaller crowd gathered in Hyde Park yesterday for the opening of the first drinking fountain built in the park for 30 years, and the serving of champagne would suggest that fountains no longer have the same links with the Temperance movement.

Small, but no less significant; for the event marks a growing backlash against the bottled water industry, which is accused by critics of squandering resources as well as creating huge amounts of waste.

For Immediate Release, September 16, 2009, HALIFAX – Halifax Regional Municipality has voted to immediately phase out the purchase and provision of bottled water in City Hall and ensure access to public tap water in all HRM facilities.

Regional Council also asked staff to come forward with detailed action plans before banning bottled water within all HRM facilities.

“Halifax’s decision to ban the bottle and turn on the tap is an important first step and a clear indication that bottled water’s 15 minutes are up,” says Jocelyne Rankin of the Ecology Action Centre. “While Halifax didn’t go far enough by taking the bottle out of all HRM facilities, today’s vote is a sign that we’re moving in the right direction.”

For Immediate Release, September 3, 2009 - Water fountains are disappearing on university and college campuses across Canada according to a new Polaris Institute report, Campus Water Fountains: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY.

The report uncovers a series of disturbing trends related to public drinking water access at Canadian universities and colleges:

The Good – looks at what kind of reinvestment in public tap water infrastructure is happening on campus.

The Bad – presents cases where water fountains have blatantly been excluded from new buildings.

The Ugly – explains the forces on and off campus that make it is possible for university and college planners to design and construct new buildings without water fountains.

Donnachadh McCarthy , The Guardian, August 11, 2009 - The BBC has been accused of wasting public money and creating unnecessary environmental damage by spending nearly half a million pounds a year on bottled water. Responding to a freedom of information request from the Guardian, the public broadcaster said it spent £406,000 annually on large bottles for its water coolers.

In addition, BBC staff are allowed to order bottled water for the organisation's hospitality events. The BBC refused to reveal how much it did spend on bottled water at the 103,000 events it held last year, claiming the cost of finding out was more than the Freedom of Information Act required.

Bottled water can also be ordered by staff for internal meetings, provided a meeting lasts more than two hours. The broadcaster said it was assessing the "health issues" of switching from bottled to mains-fed water.