WELLINGTON WATER WATCHERS, NESTLE, ROBERT CASE

Today's Waterloo Region Record carries the following article by Leah Gerber, titled "Activist happy Nestle gone, seeks end to bottling permits". Dr. Robert Case (WLU) has been environmentally active for a very long time including researching and writing papers regarding Uniroyal Chemical in Elmira, Ontario. He has also been involved with the Wellington Water Watchers (WWW) for considerable time and along with them can take credit for Nestle's local discomfort in making money using a public resource and at the public's expense. As he states "Good for us that we raised enough of a stink to make it uncomfortable for Nestle to do business here". Nestle have sold their local interests to Ice River Water Bottling company.

Mr. Case and the WWW want to phase out all water bottling permits whether or not the water bottling industry is negatively affecting the resource or not. As he states "Water is for life, not profit." He is absolutely right. Selling water rights to corporations through water bottling permits is short sighted and can only lead to shortages, hoarding, and keeping the bulk of the public resource in private hands for private profit likely to the detriment of the rest of us whether today, tomorrow or in a decade. The sale to Ice River includes a factory in Puslinch, Ontario, Hope B.C. as well as the Middlebrook Wells near Elora, Ontario.