Klage gegen Nestlé wegen illegaler Wasserentnahme - TELL NESTLE Water is a public resource

Nestlé kommt nicht aus den Negativ-Schlagzeilen heraus und das ist gut so. Es folgt eine weitere Klage gegen Nestlé, diesmal wegen unerlaubter Wasserentnahme.

Nestlé besitzt weltweit über 70 verschiedene Wassermarken. Zu den bekanntesten gehören Perrier, San Pellegrino und Vittel, in der Schweiz auch Henniez.

Das Recht auf Wasser ist ein Menschenrecht! Doch Nestlé-Verwaltungsratschef Peter Brabeck macht kein Geheimnis daraus, dass Wasser in seinen Augen kein öffentliches Gut sein sollte, sondern auch einen Marktwert wie jedes andere Lebensmittel benötige. Nestlé erwirbt Wassernutzungsrechte und lässt Fabriken bewachen und einzäunen!

In Algerien hat Nestlé die Wassernutzungsrechte erworben und lässt die Fabriken bewachen und einzäunen. In Pakistan das Gleiche. In diesen Ländern wird das Wasser angezapft und für viel Geld in Plastikflaschen wieder verkauft, während die Bevölkerung keinen Zugang mehr zu diesem Wasser hat.

Obwohl Nestlés Erlaubnis, Wasser zu entnehmen vor 27 Jahren erlosch, ist Nestlé doch mitverantwortlich für die Dürre Kaliforniens. Aktivisten hoffen aber, dass jetzt der Gerechtigkeit Genüge getan wird. Aktivisten haben nicht nur Nestlé verklagt, sondern auch die US-Forstverwaltung wegen Nicht-Durchsetzens des Wasserentnahme-Stopps seit 27 Jahren!

Um Wasser zu verkaufen, muss man es zuerst besitzen. In weiten Teilen der USA, dem wichtigsten Absatzmarkt für Nestlés Wassersparte, gilt das „Recht der stärksten Pumpe“: Wer Land besitzt oder gepachtet hat, darf auf seinem Grundstück so viel Wasser pumpen, wie er will – ohne Rücksicht auf seine Nachbarn. Im ländlichen US-Bundesstaat Maine hat Nestlé eine ganze Reihe von Quellgebieten aufgekauft. Dort schöpft der Konzern jährlich mehrere Millionen Kubikmeter Wasser ab und transportiert sie mit Tanklastwagen zu seinen Abfüllfabriken.

Oregon musste im Juli in fünf Bezirken wegen der Dürre den Notstand ausrufen. Das Wasser wird immer knapper. Nestlé vertreibt 64 Marken Wasser in 43 Ländern. Der Konzern benutzt allein 50 Quellen in den Vereinigten Staaten. Hier ist das Wasser Mangelware. Auch in Oregon versucht Nestlé seit 6 Jahren, an die Wasserquellen zu kommen, und ist seinem Zeil nahe. Nestlé hat für sein neues Werk 50(!) Arbeitsplätze versprochen. Irgendwann platzte auch den indigenen Völkern der Kragen, sodass sie zum Aufstand gegen Nestlé aufriefen.

Sie versammelten sich vor dem Capitol, um gegen die Wasserabfüllanlage von Nestlé zu protestieren. (Tribes gather at Capitol to protest water bottling deal)

Kalifornien – Trotz Dürre und abgelaufener Genehmigung bedient sich Nestlé am Wasser

Bereits im April 2015 machten wir Netzfrauen darauf aufmerksam, dass Nestlé Waters North America schon die Quellen im Strawberry Canyon nördlich von San Bernardino anzapfen und das, obwohl die Genehmigungen bereits seit 27 Jahren abgelaufen sind. Das Wasser fließt durch eine Rohrleitung durch den National Forest und wird dann von Lastwagen zu einer Fabrikanlage befördert, wo es als Arrowhead 100 % Mountain Spring Water in Flaschen abgefüllt wird.

Bei einer Untersuchung im März 2015 stellte The Desert Sun fest, dass die Erlaubnis, die Nestlé hatte, um Wasser durch den National Forest von San Bernardino zu transportieren, bereits im Jahr 1988 abgelaufen war.

Die Campaigner Gruppe The Story Of Stuff Project hat nun eine Klage gegen Nestlé angekündigt und zwar wegen illegaler Entnahme von Grundwasser in Kalifornien für seine Marke Arrowhead, die als einer der Hauptverursacher der Dürrekatastrophe des Staates gilt.

Dank großzügiger Spenden von vielen wütenden Bürgern konnte The Story Of Stuff Project genug Geld beschaffen für einen Mini-Dokumentarfilm mit dem Namen „This Land is our Land“.
Dieser Film erzählt, wie Nestlé Millionen Gallonen Wasser vom San Bernadino National Forest abgepumpt hat, und legt Beweise über kriminelle Aktivitäten von Nestlé vor, der als einer der unethischsten Großkonzerne der Welt gilt.

The Story Of Stuff Project berichtet: „Während des Drehs in Kalifornien fand unser Team Beweise dafür, dass Nestlé außerhalb der gesetzlichen Vorgaben gehandelt hatte. Nestlés Erlaubnis zur Wasserentnahme lief bereits vor 27 Jahren ab. Der US Forest Service hätte also den Hahn zudrehen sollen, stattdessen wurde Nestlé erlaubt, weiterhin und ungehindert Wasser zu entnehmen unter Missachtung der gesetzlichen Bedingungen und ohne Erlaubnis.“

„Um nun die öffentlichen Wasserresourcen zu schützen, haben wir uns mit zwei mächtigen Partnern zusammengetan, Courage Campaign und dem Center for Biological Diversity, um Nestlé vor einem Bundesgericht zur Verantwortung zu ziehen für seine illegalen Aktivitäten in diesem öffentlichen Gebiet.“

Das sind erfreuliche Neuigkeiten für Aktivisten und schreckliche Neuigkeiten für Nestlé, dessen CEO wahnsinnig genug ist zu glauben, dass Trinkwasser kein Menschenrecht ist und es daher privatisiert werden sollte.

Eine Fabrik (von Nestlé d.ÜS) in Kalifornien wurde bereits von Aktivisten geschlossen. Es ist der nächste Schritt im Kampf gegen Gier und Umweltvernichtung durch Großkonzerne.

Bitte teilt das Video, und falls ihr noch in Flaschen abgefülltes Wasser kauft – bitte hört auf damit!

Nestle hat zur Zeit mit mehreren Baustellen zu kämpfen:

Hagens Berman nimmt die Schokoladeproduzenten Nestlé, Hershey’s und Mars ins Visier. Gegen die Firmen seien Sammelklagen in Kalifornien eingereicht worden – Die Kanzlei wirft den Kakaolieferanten insbesondere Kinderhandel und Zwangsarbeit vor Sammelklage gegen Nestlé, Hershey’s und Mars – Consumers File Suit Against Nestle, Hershey’s and Mars for Alleged Child Labor Used in Chocolate Production
Eine Sammelklage wurde in Kalifornien eingereicht, die Nestlé der Beihilfe zur Sklaverei in Thailand vorwirft. Nestlé importiere über einen thailändischen Lieferanten Thai Union Frozen Products mehr als 12 000 Tonnen Tiernahrung auf der Basis von Meeresfrüchten für die großen in den USA verkauften Marken. Ein Teil der Meeresfrüchte werde unter Sklaverei-Bedingungen gewonnen. >Sammelklage gegen Nestlé in den USA wegen Sklaverei – Unterstützt die EU wissentlich Sklavenarbeit?
In Indien wird Nestlé verklagt. Die indische Regierung verklagt Nestlé auf Schadenersatz in Millionenhöhe. Auslöser des Rechtsstreits sind mit Blei vergiftete Maggi-Nudeln. 90 Millionen Euro soll Nestlé zahlen, doch das ist noch nicht alles. Nestle hat einen Anteil in Höhe von 80 % am indischen Instant-Nudel-Markt, doch das Image in Indien ist angekratzt, wenn nicht sogar vernichtet wie die 400 Millionen Suppentüten, die in Indien vernichtet werden mussten.>Nestle Indien: Millionen Schadenersatzforderung, Vernichtung Millonen von Suppentüten und rote Zahlen -India Seeks $100 Million in Damages from Nestlé Over Maggi Noodles

Nestlé to be Sued for Californian Drought Crimes!

Published: October 14, 2015 | Authors: Sophie McAdam |

While Nestlé’s permit to extract water expired 27 years ago, the corporation is a main contributor to California drought crisis. But finally, activists hope justice will be served.

Campaign group The Story of Stuff Project have just announced they will be pursuing legal action against Nestlé for illegally extracting groundwater in California for its Arrowhead brand, which has been a key contributor to the State’s drought crisis.

Thanks to generous donations from a huge number of furious citizens, The Story Of Stuff Project was able to raise enough money to film a mini-documentary called ‘This land is our land’. It tells the story of Nestlé’s removal of millions of gallons of water from the San Bernardino National Forest- and it details evidence of criminal activity by one of the world’s most unethical corporations.

The Story of Stuff Project reports:

“While filming in southern California our team uncovered hard evidence that Nestlé has been operating outside the bounds of the law. When Nestlé’s permit to remove water expired 27 years ago, the U.S. Forest Service should have turned off the spigot. But instead, it has allowed Nestlé to continue operating unabated, in violation of the terms of its own permit.

“So to defend the public resources at stake we’ve joined with two great partners—Courage Campaign and the Center for Biological Diversity—to turn up the heat on Nestlé by filing a federal lawsuit challenging the company’s illegal occupation of these public lands.”

This is great news for campaigners and terrible news for Nestlé’s CEO, who is insane enough to believe that water is not a human right and should be privatized. Activists have already shut down a plant in California, and this is the next step in the fight against greed and corporate ecocide. Please share this (very moving) video to support the campaign, and if you are still buying bottled water, please stop!

U.S. Forest Service sued over Nestle water permit

Ian James, The Desert Sun 9:11 a.m. PDT October 14, 2015
Three environmental groups sued the U.S. Forest Service on Tuesday for allowing Nestle, the country’s largest bottled water producer, to pipe water out of a national forest for years using a permit that lists an expiration date of 1988.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court by the Center for Biological Diversity, the Story of Stuff Project and the Courage Campaign Institute.

The groups said the Forest Service has violated the law by letting the company draw water from the San Bernardino National Forest without a valid permit. They argue the taking of water threatens sensitive habitat along a creek, and they are demanding the agency halt Nestle’s use of wells and a water pipeline in the forest “unless and until it issues a valid special use permit.”

The groups brought the suit after a series of investigations by The Desert Sun revealed that the Forest Service has long allowed the company to keep using the old permit, and that officials failed to follow through on plans for a permit review that would have involved an environmental study.

“We want better management of public lands,” said Rachel Doughty, a Berkeley-based environmental lawyer representing the Courage Campaign Institute and the Story of Stuff Project. “Right now, it really feels like the primary emphasis is letting Nestle take water. They’ve delayed the permit review for years and years and years, and let them continue to operate without a permit.”

The Forest Service in August said officials plan to begin studying the renewal of the company’s permit. The agency has told Nestle that until it decides on the company’s application, its current permit remains in effect.

Forest Service Press Officer John Heil said in an email that officials “will develop a proposed action for the issuance of a new Nestle permit which the public will then be invited to review and comment on before next steps are taken.”

When that process will begin isn’t clear, but Forest Service officials have said it will be soon. Heil said he could not discuss pending litigation.

The defendants named in the suit also include Regional Forester Randy Moore and San Bernardino National Forest Supervisor Jody Noiron.

Nestle Waters North America, which bottles water from the forest as Arrowhead 100% Mountain Spring Water, is not named in the lawsuit. Jane Lazgin, the company’s director of media and corporate communications, said the company was unaware of the suit and not in a position to comment.

Nestle, based in Vevey, Switzerland, is the world’s largest food and beverage company, and Nestle Waters North America runs five bottling plants in California. Some of the water is drawn from wells that tap into natural springs, including Arrowhead Springs in the mountains north of San Bernardino.

The company has said its 1978 permit continues to be legally “in full force and effect” until the Forest Service acts on it.

Nestle says it bottled nearly 25 million gallons from the national forest last year, on average about 68,000 gallons a day. That was down from about 27 million gallons during 2013.

The company’s permit – the latest in a series of permits dating back to the 1930s – was issued to its predecessor Arrowhead Puritas Waters, Inc., for the purpose of maintaining more than four miles of water pipes, water collection tunnels and horizontal wells in the national forest.

The water is drawn from about a dozen wells on the mountainside and flows through separate pipes before coming together in the single pipeline that runs along Strawberry Creek. The water is collected in a tank and hauled in trucks to a bottling plant in Ontario.

The Forest Service does not collect fees for the water. It has been charging Nestle an annual permit fee of $524.

Critics including former Forest Service employees have been calling for a thorough environmental review, arguing the company shouldn’t be allowed to keep taking unchecked amounts of water from public lands, especially during the drought.

In the lawsuit, the environmental groups say the removal of water from the ecosystem is harming the habitat of threatened animals ranging from mountain yellow-legged frogs to birds such as willow flycatchers and California spotted owls. They point out that the wells are drilled as deep as 490 feet into the mountain, and say the habitat would be healthier if that were allowed to flow naturally through the canyon.

Earlier this year, the Courage Campaign Institute launched a petition drive demanding that Nestle stop bottling water in California during the drought. The group said more than 185,000 people added their names to its online petition.

“For us, it’s this whole privatization of public resources and profiteering off the stuff that all of us are supposed to own collectively,” said Eddie Kurtz, executive director of the California-based nonprofit. “The issue could not be more urgent, and neither Nestle nor the Forest Service showed any indication they would take action to remedy the situation.”

He said it’s the first time the Courage Campaign has decided to file a lawsuit in one of its campaigns.

The suit is also a first for the Story of Stuff Project, which has previously built its advocacy campaigns around short videos that it has produced on topics such as e-waste, the hazards of microbeads in products, and the environmental impacts of overconsumption. The group’s latest 4-minute film, about Nestle’s use of water from the national forest, was released on Tuesday to coincide with the filing of the lawsuit.

“We need to create the political and the public will to make the Forest Service do their job,” said Stiv Wilson, campaigns director for the Berkeley-based nonprofit. “We wanted a big public outcry to essentially give the political cover to the Forest Service for them to be able to do their job.”

The permit is one of hundreds the Forest Service has allowed to fall out-of-date in California. Moore, the regional forester, said earlier this year that out of about 15,000 “special use” permits in the state – for all sorts of uses ranging from cabins to pipes for city water supplies – about 4,500 permits are past their expiration dates and have yet to be reviewed. An analysis of 1,108 water-related permits showed that 616 permits, or 56 percent of the total, were past their expiration dates.

Lisa Belenky, a lawyer for the Center for Biological Diversity, said the Forest Service shouldn’t have allowed Nestle to keep operating without reevaluating the permit.

“It’s basically an unpermitted use, an unlawful use,” Belenky said. The plaintiffs argue that the Forest Service has been violating the Federal Land Policy Management Act and the Administrative Procedure Act.

Documents obtained by The Desert Sun have shown that in the 1990s and early 2000s, there were discussions about conducting a review of the permit and carrying out environmental studies, but then the efforts stopped. The records also show that at times, Forest Service officials turned down requests by Nestle and by Arrowhead’s previous owner to tap more water sources in the forest.

In explaining the nearly three decades of inaction on the permit, Forest Service officials have cited a heavy workload of other priorities, wildfires and floods, a tight budget and limited staffing. The national forest allowed Nestle to rebuild portions of its pipeline after it was badly damaged in 2003 during the Old Fire, which set off deadly floods and mudslides.

Gene Zimmerman, the forest supervisor who was in charge at the time, retired in 2005. He now does paid consulting work for Nestle.

In their lawsuit, the environmental groups say the Forest Service “has never confirmed that Nestle has a valid water right to the water it diverts from the Strawberry Creek drainage.”

The company, however, has said it holds valid water rights that have been in continuous use since the late 1800s. Nestle has also insisted its bottling operation isn’t causing any harm to the environment.

Late last year, retired Forest Service biologist Steve Loe began writing to the Forest Service to express concern about Nestle’s use of water during the drought and to call for a review of the permit.

Loe, who is a member of the three environmental groups, said he believes it’s a shame they had to take the Forest Service to court, but that it was necessary.

“The public trust is not being upheld by the Forest Service. They’re not taking care of those public lands,” Loe said. “I want to see them stop taking any water until the groundwater starts to recover from the drought, and that they only start taking water when there’s a new permit that protects the national forest.”

The controversy parallels similar debates over bottled water that have flared elsewhere in California and the West during the drought.

In May, Starbucks announced it would stop producing the bottled water brand Ethos Water in California due to the drought and would move the operation to Pennsylvania.

In August, a group of Mount Shasta residents and activists sued in an attempt to block Crystal Geyser Water Company from starting up a bottling plant that would use groundwater to produce sparkling mineral water, tea and juice drinks.

In Oregon, activists have been pushing for a local ballot measure aimed at preventing Nestle from building a plant in the town of Cascade Locks where the company would bottle spring water.

Ian James can be reached by email at ian.james@desertsun.com and on Twitter at @TDSIanJames.

TELL NESTLE: Unbottle California

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Übersetzung Netzfrau Nanette Lohmann – Informationen Doro Schreier

Klage gegen Nestlé wegen illegaler Wasserentnahme – TELL NESTLE Water is a public resource