Portsmouth Herald News - Local, state sactivists take issue with water sale to Nestle

By Daniel Limmer

What began last week as a press release announcing a pending contract between Nestle and the Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Wells Water District appears to be turning into the latest battlefield between activists and an international corporation over bottling water from local springs.

Opponents of the sale believe water is essential to human life, is a valuable resource that can't be guaranteed into the future, and it belongs to people in the community and shouldn't be sold.

Nestle Waters North America LLC — aka Poland Spring — and the water district believe entering into an agreement will provide quality water to Nestle and significant revenue to the district without jeopardizing water supply to local homes and businesses.

An informational meeting is being held at 6 p.m. Sunday, June 22, at the Kennebunk Unitarian Universalist Church on Main Street.

The public may comment at the water district trustees meeting at 3 p.m. Wednesday, June 25.

The local players

Jamilla El-Shafei is no stranger to activism. A key organizer of the protests in Kennebunkport last summer, she immediately knew she and her husband, Bob Walter, would become involved with the water issue as well.

Activist is a word that El-Shafei dislikes.

"I prefer 'engaged citizen,'" she said. "I don't view myself as an activist."

She is concerned that her involvement in other issues could taint people's opinion about this important issue.

"Most people consider me a peace activist. This (water) is a bi-partisan issue," she said. "I don't want my face to make it partisan."

Bob Walter, El-Shafei's detail-oriented husband, is often a background figure during public activities but he is passionate about this issue and has reviewed the Nestle/KKW draft agreement in detail.

Norm Labbe is the Superintendent of the KKW Water District. He is an engineer with 32 years of experience in the water business. He believes the proposed agreement between Nestle and KKW is in the best interest of all involved and without risk.

He quotes facts and detailed water flow rates from memory.

The issues

KKW's Board of Trustees is prepared to sign an agreement with Nestle to sell water from the Branch Brook Aquifer. The 30-year renewable contract would allow Nestle to draw spring water at a maximum average rate of 300 gallons/minute (432,000 gallons per day). The water would be sent through a pipe to a facility to be built on Route 109 in Sanford. From there, it would be moved by truck to Nestle's facility in Hollis.

At peak flow this would create 54 daily trips based on trailers capable of carrying 8,000 gallons of water.

While the facts specified in the draft agreement appear clear, beliefs and passions run deep on issues ranging from climate change to corporate greed to KKW income.

Both El-Shafei and Labbe have reported queries from national media outlets considering coverage of the June 25 meeting. Those who have opposed water sales to Nestle in other parts of the state have been in contact with El-Shafei and have offered support, including attendance at local meetings.

How much water is 432,000 gallons?

Labbe is quick to note it is only a fraction of the capabilities of KKW — even during peak season.

"The Branch Brook Aquifer has a flow rate of 10—11 million gallons per day," he said. In the summer, a peak period, the greatest demand runs at about 7 million gallons/day. On Tuesday, June 17, the district expected to pump between 4-5 million gallons of water.

Labbe also notes that over the past three years KKW has developed the ability to add an additional 3 million gallons/day if necessary. He believes this detailed information on the Branch Brook Aquifer is among the most accurate in the state. It was the first aquifer in the state to be computer mapped in 1981.

Walter noted that all of the recent data on water flow and availability was conducted or funded by Nestle — a fact that Labbe confirms.

Labbe added that although this is true he denies any "smoke and mirrors" in the facts and numbers.

Citing older tests, his experience in hydrology and the fact that the deal must pass the scrutiny of Maine agencies such as the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Human Services Drinking Water Program, he believes the source of the tests is a non-issue.

But will the Branch Brook Aquifer ever run dry?

Emily Posner of the statewide organization Defending Water for Life in Maine, a project supported by the Alliance for Democracy that focuses keeping water resources within the "public trust," said the guarantee of water isn't a sure thing.

"People use information they learned in fourth grade to understand the water supply," she said. "It rains, rain fills the lakes and rivers, water evaporates to the clouds, and the cycle starts over again. What this doesn't take into account is situations such as this when water is bottled and removed from the ecosystem it came from."

El-Shafei and Walter point to the unpredictable climate changes seen around the world as another reason not to believe the water levels will always stay the same.

Labbe noted the draft agreement accounts for drought and allows KKW to suspend Nestle's water withdrawal if Branch Brook flow drops below 3 million gallons/day — a clause Labbe believes many other Maine communities don't have in their agreements.

In fact, about once every five years, water in the Branch Brook Aquifer has reached a level that would cause suspension of water withdrawal, Labbe said. "It gets critical in times around droughts when there isn't much water around the dam. It doesn't dry up but in the past there has been environmental stress in the lower part of the Branch Brook."

Labbe said this is when the additional peak supply comes into play. "We'll let 1 million gallons flow downstream past the dam in cases like this."

Labbe also argues that water is a "totally renewable resource."

He noted that the American Water Works Association has predicted consistently wet weather for the Northeast and that since 1895 there have been consistent flow rates through the aquifer.

Despite the numbers presented by Labbe, El-Shafei and Walter remain unconvinced.

"With climate change and drought we just don't know what will happen in 10 years," El-Shafei said. "It is easy to get into a contract but harder to get out."

She doesn't believe that provisions for drought are guaranteed to hold — especially against an international giant like Nestle.

Drought isn't the only environmental concern being voiced around this issue. Plastic bottles in landfills, pollution from tractor trailers hauling water and wear on the roads are all costs that aren't factored in.

What about the money?

Labbe said that on average, Nestle will pay about 0.3 cents (three tenths of a cent) per gallon. A rate that is double the rate paid by the largest KKW water users.

Putting this in perspective, Garden Street Market in Kennebunk sells 2.5 gallon containers of Nestle-owned Poland Spring water for $2.99. Nestle will pay KKW less than a penny for that amount of water.

"It's pathetic, isn't it?" said El-Shafei. "It is a pittance for our natural resources. Our valuable natural resources."

While Labbe said the rate is competitive, El-Shafei believes there is an important difference.

"KKW users aren't reselling their water," she said.

El-Shafei said the KKW has kept their deal with Nestle close to the vest for too long. "They have kept this low key and caught the community off guard. Even the Trustee's meeting being held at 3 p.m. limits public participation."

The water district's Winter 2008 newsletter made a reference to a land purchase that would include "the facilities for a recently operated (albeit somewhat controversial) bulk spring water business."

"We're certainly not getting a good deal for our water, that's for sure," El-Shafei said. "I want to educate people. And to at least delay the vote by the (water district) trustees on the 25th. That's a start"

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