SEBWA President's Letter

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Dear SEBWA Members,

Greetings in the 1st Quarter of 2008! Yes, another year gone, but definitely not forgotten. I must say 2007 was a very interesting year for our industry, and 2008 projects to be interesting and challenging, yet productive. Our industry has been through many changes over the years, and I believe those changes have merely touched the surface.

What do I mean? Where am I going with this?

Well, let’s begin with the obvious. The Southeast United States has been plagued with a drought at a magnitude that many areas have never witnessed. Droughts and other natural disasters tend to awaken “the sleeping”. For most, if all is well, then all is forgotten. This drought is definitely not forgotten. It has stirred many of individuals and most of all, our government.

In 2007 with the ongoing criticism from activist groups, the media and many other making unwarranted claims against our industry, it has caused a heap of actions.  

To name a few, this year we saw municipalities banning the purchase of bottled water for use within governmental offices. We saw new and expanded taxes on bottled water, such as Chicago’s City Council adopting a $0.05 tax on each bottled water container in both the PET and the H.O.D. sector.

More importantly, we witnessed concern from The House Domestic Policy Subcommittee in the hearing titled: “Assessing the Environmental Risks of the Water Bottling Industry’s Extraction of Groundwater”. This hearing reviewed the environmental impact of the bottling plants extracting ground and spring water in rural communities. It addressed issues like:

1. Wider policies for the bottled water industry
2. Community impact
3. Geological/Hydrological implications on local aquifers
4. General industry practices
5. The adequacy of governmental rights  (its rights to the water)

All of these events can have a major negative impact on my company and your company, as well as the entire bottled water industry.

Please help by supporting your regional and/or national associations in an effort to ward off many of these unwarranted claims and unnessacery changes before it is too late.

Best of Business,
Shane Taylor
SEBWA President

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