http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/273608-feds-propose-5-year-water-bottling-permit-for-nestle-in-calif
Federal officials are proposing a 5 year permit for Nestle to bottle water on federal land in the drought ridden state of California. The Forest Service and DoA are both attempting to limit this permit, at the very least attaching conditions which require both the DoA and Nestle to conduct research to verify the ecosystem would not be adversely affected by the Nestle’s bottling. Currently the permit has not been approved but from Nestle’s perspective the situation looks promising.
As we discussed in class, there are a multitude of potential negative externalities that may effect the local communities and environment around this bottling. If this permit goes through the impact on the community’s infrastructure will likely be staggering as these communities are not suited to manage that level of industrial bottling. The impacts would likely be similar to the ‘boom towns’ the fracking industry leaves behind throughout the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania.