Poland Spring Bottled Water Lawsuit Target.
The Washington Post Print Poland Spring, the country’s best-selling bottled water, is “a colossal fraud,” according to a class-action lawsuit.
“Not one drop of Poland Spring Water emanates from a water source that complies with the Food and Drug Administration definition of ‘spring water,’ ” the lawsuit states.
A spokeswoman for Nestle Waters North America said its water meets all federal and state guidelines for spring water.
“The claims made in the lawsuit are without merit and an obvious attempt to manipulate the legal system for personal gain.” The lawsuit, which comes as Nestle expands its operations in Maine, is the latest in a string of legal actions against bottled water companies.
In 2003, Nestle agreed to pay $10 million to charity to settle a similar class-action lawsuit that alleged it falsely advertised Poland Spring water.
But the company maintained that it had not been deceptive in its practices, and it did not change the way it sources its water.
“Most of Nestle’s waters are pumped from the ground, but the bigger issue that the regulatory definition of what really counts as spring water is really weak,” said Peter Gleick, a scientist and president emeritus of the Pacific Institute, a nonprofit policy research center in Oakland, Calif. “No one is really looking over the shoulders of the bottled water companies.” Bottled water sales have soared to record highs in recent years as Americans cut back on sugary drinks.
Annual sales of bottled water grew 10 percent last year to $16 billion, surpassing sales of carbonated sodas for the first time, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a New York-based research and consulting firm.
Nestle has expanded its water business.The company, which recently moved its U.S. headquarters to Arlington, Virginia, oversees a dozen brands of still and sparkling water, including Deer Park, Acqua Panna, Perrier and San Pelligrino.

‘Not one drop’ of Poland Spring bottled water is from a spring, lawsuit claims.
“Not one drop of Poland Spring Water emanates from a water source that complies with the Food and Drug Administration definition of ‘spring water,’” the lawsuit states.
A spokeswoman for Nestlé Waters North America said its water meets all federal and state guidelines for spring water.
“The claims made in the lawsuit are without merit and an obvious attempt to manipulate the legal system for personal gain.” The lawsuit, which comes as Nestle expands its operations in Maine, is the latest in a string of legal actions against bottled water companies.
In 2003, Nestle agreed to pay $10 million to charity to settle a similar class-action lawsuit that alleged it falsely advertised Poland Spring water.
But the company maintained that it had not been deceptive in its practices, and it did not change the way it sources its water.
“Most of Nestle’s waters are pumped from the ground, but the bigger issue that the regulatory definition of what really counts as spring water is really weak,” said Peter Gleick, a scientist and president emeritus of the Pacific Institute, a nonprofit policy research center in Oakland, Calif. “No one is really looking over the shoulders of the bottled water companies.” Bottled water sales have soared to record highs in recent years as Americans cut back on sugary drinks.
Annual sales of bottled water grew 10 percent last year to $16 billion, surpassing sales of carbonated sodas for the first time, according to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a New York-based research and consulting firm.
The company, which recently moved its U.S. headquarters to Arlington, Va., oversees a dozen brands of still and sparkling water, including Deer Park, Acqua Panna, Perrier and San Pelligrino.
Poland Spring, its website says, comes from “some pretty incredible springs — eight of them to be exact.” The site includes a map of the appropriately named sites, including Cold Spring, Clear Spring and Evergreen Spring.

This Is How Much Spring Water Is in Poland Spring.
Charles Krupa/AP/REX/ShutterstockCertain companies make dubious claims.
For example, Sony claimed that these phones were waterproof and now they owe a bunch of people a bunch of money.
Mountain Dew actually contains zero percent dew.
This papaya company failed to list “Salmonella” as one of its ingredients.
But one might expect these things with the above products.
Phones get recalled, soda rarely has natural ingredients, and fruits sometimes sour due to deadly bacteria.
This is life.
But when it comes to Poland Spring water, one might think that what you read is what you get.
But, as it turns out, Poland Spring is neither from Poland (already known fact, they never claimed to have Polski H₂O) nor from a spring, according to a new lawsuit.

SEE IT: Texas residents fight and scramble for water, supplies as Hurricane Harvey heads toward coast.
The video recorded on Thursday shows shoppers at a grocery store in the Houston area frantically trying to grab packages of water and other items.
No water on the shelf.
one Houston-area shopper told KHOU.
"Texas is about to get hit by a major hurricane," Brock Long, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, told "Good Morning America" on Friday.
"We’re going to see significant rainfall over the next three days.
The retail company Kroger sold 80 truckloads of water in the area, according to KHOU.
"It’s definitely getting to the point that people are getting over prepared," local resident Rajean Erpar told the station while lugging bottled water.
Dozens were in lines Thursday at a Corpus Christi Sam’s Club, at home improvement stores and at supermarkets.
He said grocery items were likely more available in Houston than back home in Corpus Christi, where Garcia, a beer distributor salesman, said stores were "crazy."

UPDATE 8/15/17 @ 6 p.m. ASHLAND, Ky. (WSAZ) — Officials tell WSAZ they are hopeful water can be restored in Ashland by Wednesday morning.
Ashland Schools were are closed Wednesday.
The city of Ashland will provide bottled water from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday in the lower parking lot of Ashland Career and Technical College.
The Ashland Parks Department has set up a water distribution station at the Central Park Playground Concession Stand from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday.
Schools officials tell WSAZ they plan to start school Thursday.
ASHLAND, Ky. (WSAZ) — A water line break may cut out water for people who get it from Ashland Water.
All residents served by Ashland Water may have little to no water for the next 24-48 hours.
The city of Ashland will provide bottled water from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday in the lower parking lot of Ashland Career and Technical College.
That was the supposed to be the first day of school for students.
Schools officials tell WSAZ they plan to start school Thursday.

District Finds High Levels of Lead in Education Center Water.
Wendy Fry, NBC 7 San Diego Unified officials have shut off some drinking fountains at district headquarters after high levels of lead were discovered in the water.
Bottled water is being provided to employees and the public at the Education Center, a district spokesman said.
The federal limit for lead in water is 15 ppb.
Bottled water provided instead #nbc7pic.twitter.com/qKMAiX4h8Z The district also discovered lead in drinking water at 25 ppb in an annex building at the Education Center.
Water was at tested at 207 schools on district property.
Results show 19 percent of the schools have some level of lead in the water.
Schools are required by the state to fix problems if they discover lead in water at levels greater than 15 parts per billion (ppb) in schools.
However, they are not required to test district office buildings or other district property.
A spokesman said the additional testing is something the district decided to do, beyond the state requirements, to make sure all employees and public have safe drinking water.

New Nestlé Waters bottle labels aim to encourage more recycling.
STAMFORD — Nestlé Waters North America announced this week it has begun adding new recycling labels to its bottled half-liter products in the U.S., marking the start of one of the company’s most significant environmental initiatives.
“By adopting the How2Recycle label, millions of consumers will now have a clear and consistent recycling guide on the side of the bottle — driving recovery of the bottle and a reduction in environmental impact.” Nestlé Waters began the initiative this month by adding the How2Recycle “Empty and Replace Cap” label to certain Nestlé Pure Life bottles.
The empty-and-replace-cap instructions direct users to empty the bottle’s contents and then screw the cap back on before recycling the bottle.
The new label would then begin to appear on certain Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ozarka, Ice Mountain and Zephyrhills brand half-liter bottles later in August.
Some Arrowhead bottles would add the label next month.
The How2Recycle label was created in 2012 by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, a collaborative of businesses, educational institutions and government agencies focused on making recycling easier.
The labeling is found on thousands of products across sectors such as beverages, toys, baby care, pet care, baking supplies and condiments.
About 5 percent of plastic beverage bottles turn into litter, according to a 2009 study by Stamford nonprofit Keep America Beautiful.
“It’s one of the reasons we’ve invested $6 million in the Closed Loop Fund.” Among key education initiatives, Nestlé Waters is a founding partner of the “I Want To Be Recycled” PSA campaign that Keep America Beautiful launched with the Ad Council in 2013.

TRENTON — Trenton officials say that elevated levels of lead have been detected in drinking water in some homes in the city’s water system.
A letter was sent to Trenton Water Works’ 64,000 customers this week after a routine sampling found that lead levels exceeded the federal standard in 14 of the 119 sites tested during the first half of the year.
The city’s letter, however, did not say which neighborhoods were affected or how high the lead levels were, causing some residents to worry.
DEP spokesman Larry Hajna said the highest sample was 106 ppb, but most were in the range of 15 to 50 ppb.
He says that the issue is not with the water source, but with either lead service lines or lead-based plumbing fixtures that were common in homes built before the mid-1980s.
"It’s mostly related to fixtures in the respective residences," he said.
Hajna said that by the end of the year, Trenton also has to submit a corrective plan that could include replacing lead service lines and adding chemicals to control corrosion and prevent leaching of lead.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com.
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Water warning: council activates emergency.
The council this morning issued a boil water notice, warning residents in a large swathe of the city to avoid drinking water from the tap, or boil it, because of a water quality issue.
The affected area stretched across much of the north of the city, including the CBD, North Dunedin, Leith Valley, Woodhaugh and any area in the central city between the town belt and the harbour.
Dunedin Hospital has also activated its own EOC, and was relying on water tankers arranged by the council to supply fresh drinking water, council infrastructure and networks general manager Ruth Stokes said.
Eight other water tankers have been dispatched to other parts of the city, including to George St Normal School and Logan Park High School, both in the affected area, she said.
Council infrastructure and networks general manager Ruth Stokes told the Otago Daily Times it appeared untreated raw water released from the Ross Creek Reservoir on Sunday had been able to enter the city’s drinking water network.
Complaints were received Monday night and this morning, prompting an investigation which found an old pipe – no longer recorded on council plans – just below the reservoir.
The pipe connected to the city’s drinking supply, allowing raw water back into the network, she said.
The raw water came from a “protected catchment”, and would have been diluted as it mixed with the city’s treated drinking water supply, but the health risks were not yet known, she said.
By lunch time the shelves at Dunedin central’s Countdown were almost empty of bottled water.

The costs associated with plastic use are as varied as the plastics themselves.
These range from environmental costs, to health costs.
Some 8% of all the world’s oil goes to making plastic products.
The cost of the bottled water itself.
Yet, we have been “taught” to believe that water from a bottle, sometimes costing as much as $10 a gallon, is better for us, or has more or less of this mineral or that vitamin.
In fact, most bottled water companies take municipal or spring water, bottle it up, and charge you more for that water, then you pay for a gallon of gas.
When I think of this cost, I think of all the people in the world who already struggle to make ends meet.
What looked like a beautiful beach from afar, turned out to be a beach overrun with people and plastic rubbish.
If we buy a reusable water bottle, and fill it with tap water than municipalities might be more inclined to install hydration stations, where you can refill your bottle.
By making recycling easier, an improved “default,” more people MIGHT actually start doing it!