Located in the heart of Waushara County in Wisconsin, the serenely beautiful Mecan River and Springs are home to bass, trout and other wildlife. Local residents, farmers and business owners are concerned that Nestlé / Perrier's plans for high-capacity wells in the Mecan Watershed and other Wisconsin waterways would damage their communities' economies, natural resources, tourist income and way of life.

Governors approve ban on water diversion
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Representatives of eight states and two Canadian provinces formally approved an agreement Tuesday that would prevent outsiders such as the booming cities of the Southwest from raiding Great Lakes water. "The lakes represent a fresh water ecosystem that's unique on our planet supporting thousands of species, including human beings. These agreements will protect our Great Lakes from the threats of diversions outside this basin," said Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, the incoming chairman of the Council of Great Lakes Governors.

Great Lakes Water PDF
Limitations on Privatization and Diversions by James M. Olson

Lakes cleanup plan is unveiled
CHICAGO (AP) - A partnership of federal, state and local officials proposed a 15-year, $20 billion plan Monday for cleaning up the Great Lakes, the source of drinking water for 30 million people and a vital link in the nation's shipping network.

Report: Lakes' 'immune system' is weak
TRAVERSE CITY - As wetlands disappear and shorelines are degraded, the Great Lakes are losing their ability to cope with environmental stress and ward off a catastrophic breakdown, scientists said Thursday. "The immune system of the Great Lakes is weakened and it needs to be restored to prevent the ecological collapse of the lakes," said Andy Buchsbaum, director of the National Wildlife Federation's Great Lakes office.

Stop exporting Wisconsin water
July 27, 2006 The one-dimensional story on the economic value of bottled water, "The bottled water business is booming," in Friday's Wisconsin State Journal missed the forest for the trees. Wisconsin's economic growth will be determined in part by its vast water resources. But if we export our waters a bottle at a time, we may be simultaneously exporting future water- dependent jobs and diminishing our manufacturing base. Bottled water, unlike other products that use water such as paper manufacturing, is not just another way to capitalize on our water wealth. For Neenah Springs and Aquafina, water is the product. But for the vast majority of Wisconsin's manufacturing jobs, water is one ingredient incorporated into a final product. The difference might appear subtle and legalistic, but it could be the difference between exporting jobs and environmental protections and building thriving communities around the Great Lakes.

Editorial: Tapping into Lake Michigan
February 2, 2006 A survey released last week by the Public Policy Forum shows that most people throughout southeastern Wisconsin see water as a regional resource and a regional issue. And, according to the survey, people want their political leaders in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine, Ozaukee, Kenosha, Washington and Walworth counties to work together to solve regional problems. That means that most people recognize that Waukesha's water problems are everyone's problems and require a regional solution, which may in the end mean obtaining water from Lake Michigan.

Honoring the legacy of the Great Lakes by protecting its water
When thinking about the water problems facing the city of Waukesha and other communities in the fast-growing counties surrounding Milwaukee, a famous line from President Ronald Reagan’s first inaugural address comes to mind: “Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”

Radioactivity, salt taint goundwater as inland areas dig ever deeper
Communities already are pumping so much out of the sandstone that historic groundwater flows have been reversed and water in and beneath Lake Michigan is now being drawn west to fill the void.

Meet the everyday people who brick-walled Perrier
A minor revolution has taken place here in the heart of rural Wisconsin. The little old ladies (and their men) got mad. Drive around the block, over the bridge, and past the clapboard rural church, and you'll see signs telling Perrier, part of the multinational Nestle corporation, to go away.

Perrier foes apparently get wish
The high-capacity well permits held by Nestle Waters will expire Friday and the company doesn't have any current plans to reapply. "We are obviously not using them, so we are letting the permits lapse," Lynn Morgan, public relations for Nestle (formerly Perrier Group of America), said in a telephone interview on Tuesday. "During our search for a plant in the Midwest we looked at Wisconsin and at Big Spring," Morgan said. "Nestle Waters went to Michigan. The plant there is up and running and doing well, so our site search has been fulfilled."

Perrier pullout praised
The Perrier Group of America, (AKA Nestle Waters) had sought to locate a water bottling plant at Big Spring in the town of Haven, just over the line into Columbia County. Instead, the company will focus on the plant it opened last May in Michigan, said Lynn Morgan, a spokeswoman for Nestle.

Stop the Corporate Takeover of Our Water
Taking our common wealth and selling it
The greater villains are loose in our world today, literally thirsting to take things that are yours and mine—and this time they might make off with the greatest plunder of all: our water. Yes, the ideologues and greedheads brought us the fairy tale of energy deregulation and the Ponzi scheme of Enron are aggressively pushing for deregulation and privatization of the world's water supplies and systems. They are determined to turn this essential public resource into another commodity for traders and speculators—a private plaything for personal profiteering.

States fear being drained by bottled-water giants
There is a growing national backlash against bottled water companies, especially market giant Perrier, by communities that fear local wells, wetlands and streams will be drained dry in the quest for corporate profits.

Perrier coming back for data
The DNR was back in New Haven talking about Perrier last week. The Perrier Group of America plans are to collect additional data, to take "at least a year." Circuit Court Judge Richard Wright in a January decision ruled the agreement the DNR signed with Perrier was "valid and enforceable," but the judge also ruled the environmental assessment was not adequate and additional data needs to be collected to make sure the wells won't impact wetlands, ground water or surface water.

Web site offers Lakes information
A new Web site offers news articles and answers to questions on the Great Lakes, as well as links to more than 1,000 environmental organizations in the region.

As bottled water sales rise, so does opposition to plants
27-Mar-2002 Bottled water companies are facing some opposition in communities across the nation that fear local wells, wetlands and streams are being drained dry in the pursuit of corporate profits.

States fear being drained by bottled-water giants
There is a growing national backlash against bottled water companies, especially market giant Perrier, by communities that fear local wells, wetlands and streams will be drained dry in the quest for corporate profits.

Worldwater
The World's Water, a global clearinghouse for information on freshwater problems and solutions. Provides up-to-date water information, data, and Web connections for those interested in worldwide water issues.

Lack of state water policy creates a hole in the dike
The state must have a comprehensive water policy to protect the Great Lakes and all water resources - including state aquifers - that feed into them.

Perrier Drops Wisconsin Plan
Perrier opponents in Wisconsin began celebrating Friday. After months of battle, Perrier said Thursday that it won't build a water bottling plant in Adams County. The company has instead picked a site for the plant in Mecosta, Mich. Perrier CEO Kim Jeffery said that people there are much more receptive.