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The soft drink corporation Dr Pepper Snapple Group is investing $1.1 million to ensure that they have consistent access to top quality water for years ahead.
About 50 miles outside of Houston in West Columbia, Texas, the beverage company is pouring much of its money into the conservation of coastal prairie land stretching hundreds of acres.
The West Columbia project is part of the $1.1 million invested towards the Nature Conservancy group, an organization which has worked hard to conserve Texas watersheds. The Nash Prairie watershed outside of Houston is another stretch of land that has benefited from the preservation work of the Nature Conservancy.
Conservation work includes reseeding the grass which helps return the land to its former ecosystem. The original ecosystem used to span from southwestern Louisiana through Texas encompassing 6 million acres. But, modern development has cut that down by a large margin. Additionally, investing in the land ensures no other company or corporation develops the land and threaten its watersheds.
By investing in the land Dr Pepper hopes the plan will ensure water quality and quantity by preserving the land’s sponge-like properties. The water being their most precious ingredient in the soda manufacturing business.
“If there’s not fresh water, there’s no business—it’s just that simple,” said Laura Huffman, State Director of the Nature Conservancy in Texas, according to the Huffington Post.
Additionally, Dr Pepper plans to further conserve water and help the environment by cutting water use in their plants by 10 percent by the year 2015. The company has already used the process of bottle cleaning by air instead of water on 56 of their production lines since 2010.
“As a beverage company, water is in everything we do, it’s a primary ingredient,” said Tim Gratto, Dr Pepper’s Vice President of Sustainability, according to the Huffington Post.
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