Community & Labour Action

Of all the natural resources on Earth, drinking water is arguably the most precious. It is essential to life. As recently as 10 years ago, most people living in the United States and Canada took their drinking water directly from the tap or the water cooler in their workplace. Today, close to one-fifth of the population relies exclusively on bottled water for their daily hydration. Over the past decade, sales in bottled water have exploded in North America. It is now the fastest-growing segment of the entire beverage industry.

Between 1993 and 2004, the consumption of bottled water more than doubled in the U.S. alone—from 10.5 gallons (40 litres) per capita to 23.8 gallons (90 litres). (Source: Beverage Marketing Corp).

Articles

Des milliers participent à la première Journée sans eau embouteillée au Canada

Posted: March 11, 2010 Ottawa - Partout au pays, des Canadiennes et des Canadiens participent aujourd'hui à la première Journée sans eau embouteillée au Canada....
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Thousands Mark Canada’s First Bottled Water Free Day

Posted: March 11, 2010 OTTAWA ––Today, Canadians across the country are participating in Canada’s first Bottled Water Free Day. Organised by the Canadian Federation...
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Australian town votes to go dry on bottled water

Posted: July 10, 2009 Kristen Gelineau, July 10, 2009, ASSOCIATED PRESS - SYDNEY–Residents of a rural Australian town hoping to protect the Earth and their wallets have...
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Smiths Falls - Bottled Water Report

Posted: June 16, 2009 OTTAWA/ June 16, 2009 – A new report released...
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BC Municipal Bottled Water Campaign On May 28th, a joint package of materials was distributed to every municipality in British Columbia. Click here to read the letter sent to municipalities. Click here to see Municipal examples. Click here to read the press release. - Read more

Update to come soon on status of Aquablue: Smiths Falls EMC News

Posted: January 14, 2010 Jan 14, 2010 By Dianne Pinder-Moss Mayor Dennis Staples expects an announcement to be made shortly on the status of Aquablue International in...
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[Maine] Wells voters reject water extraction

Posted: November 5, 2009 Steve Bodnar, November 04, 2009, seacoastonline.com - Residents on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected a large-scale water extraction ordinance despite...
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Sacramento tells Nestle: Stop building bottled water plant

Posted: October 27, 2009 Ryan Lillis, Oct. 27, 2009, Sacramento Bee - The city of Sacramento has ordered food giant Nestlé to stop work on construction of a new bottled...
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Winning the water bottle waste debate: NOW Magazine

Posted: October 22, 2009 Oct 21 - 28, 2009 By Adria Vasil My roommates buy highly packaged products and bottled water. How do I address this in a completely...
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Bottled water foes may join forces [against Nestlé is California]

Posted: October 5, 2009 Suzanne Hurt, originally published October 4, 2009, Read More

Halifax Bans Bottled Water at City Hall - Coalition calls it “good first step”

Posted: September 16, 2009
For Immediate Release, September 16, 2009, HALIFAX – Halifax Regional Municipality has voted to immediately phase out the purchase and...
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What's the bother about bottled water?: Cheaper, safer tap water making a comeback

Posted: September 8, 2009 Suzanne Elston, September 5, 2009, The Toronto Sun-- As students return to the University of Winnipeg this month, they'll notice that something is...
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Hay River, NWT - Town adopting bottled water ban

Posted: September 3, 2009 Written by Diana Yeager Wednesday, 02 September 2009 10:37 The Town of Hay River is phasing out bottled water in its facilities as of the...
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City to dump bottled water: North Shore News

Posted: July 20, 2009 Benjamin Alldritt, North Shore News Published: Sunday, July 19, 2009 Plastic water bottles will soon begin disappearing from the City of North...
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Riverkeepers pour cold water on Aquablue plan: Ottawa Sun

Posted: July 17, 2009 By BETH JOHNSTON, Sun Media Last Updated: 16th July 2009, 8:16pm Smiths Falls residents are being sold down the river by a bottled water...
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David v. Goliath: Help Michigan Citizens Protect Their Water from Nestle's Bottling Operations

Posted: July 3, 2009 Leslie Samuelrich, Alternet, July 1, 2009, Time is ticking. It's been nine years now since Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation first went to...
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Water, water everywhere, but how many drops to drink?: National Post

Posted: June 29, 2009 By Jennifer Sygo, National Post The plastic water bottle. It is one of the quintessential images of urban health consciousness, and has become a...
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Report questions Smiths Falls bottled-water plant

Posted: June 18, 2009 Jon Willing, Ottawa Sun, 17th June 2009 - An advocacy group warns that a new bottled water plant at the former Hershey’s property in Smiths Falls...
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Give up the ­bottle, not water, ‘back-to-tap’ advocates urge: Metro News, Edmonton

Posted: June 9, 2009 NEWS CANADA June 08, 2009 12:32 a.m. Can’t bring a plastic water bottle into work anymore? You’re not alone. According to the Polaris...
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Canmore will likely soon eliminate bottled water sales at the Rec Centre: Canmore Leader

Posted: May 21, 2009 Canmore will likely soon eliminate bottled water sales at the Rec Centre Posted By Hamish MacLean/hamish@canmoreleader.com It will likely one...
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Caledon Councillors reach for the tap: The Caledon Enterprise

Posted: May 13, 2009 BY MATTHEW STRADER, ENTERPRISE STAFF At the April 23 meeting of the Region of Peel council, a report was approved with a plan to minimize the use...
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The politics of bottled water: Kingston Whig Standard

Posted: May 12, 2009 May 12, 2009 A city committee will decide tonight whether to give first approval to a ban on the sale of bottled water in municipal facilities....
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Water-permit application by Nestle taps wellspring of conflict in community

Posted: May 4, 2009 R. SCOTT RAPPOLD, May 1, 2009 , The Gazette - SALIDA, Colorado • The name Nestle conjures images of chocolate. But many in Chaffee County say...
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Activists ponder the true cost of government buying bottled water: Metro Halifax

Posted: April 30, 2009 JON TATTRIE April 30, 2009 The federal government spends millions of dollars on bottled water, wasted money better spent ensuring all Canadians...
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Water you waiting for? Run out and tap some: Toronto Sun

Posted: April 28, 2009 By MARIANNE MEED WARD 26th April 2009 As teenager, I wouldn't have dreamed of spending my limited cash on something so mundane as bottled water....
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