‘A Lot of Societal Angst’ Over Ontario Nestlé Permit Deal, Says Water Watchdog

Ontario allowing Nestlé to extract water on expired permits; BC still waiting on permits to kick in

Activists are planning to step up protests over government policy that allows Nestlé Waters Canada to extract more than a billion litres of water on expired permits in rural Ontario. The Canadian Press/Richard Buchan

Activists are planning to step up protests over a deal that has allowed Nestlé Waters Canada to extract more than a billion litres of water on expired permits for over a year in rural Ontario.

The issue has already sparked heated protests, with activists vowing to make the phasing out of commercial water extraction a provincial election issue next spring.

Last month, protesters gathered at a controversial Nestlé well site in Centre Wellington, near Guelph. The Middlebrook well had been sought after by the local community for its own needs and the town placed an anonymous bid on the property, but the Swiss bottled water giant had a previous conditional offer on it and when learning of the local bid, exercised its right of first refusal and purchased the well.

This has caused concern that the Middlebrook well—the only new source of clean drinking water in the expanding municipality—could eventually be depleted for local consumption.

“We had 120 people march up a country road on a cold, windy day to the Nestlé plant, and we’re going to have more of that because people have had enough and more people are taking action than before—there’s a lot of societal angst over this,” said Mike Nagy, a board member of Wellington Water Watchers.