ELORA – The local environmental group Save Our Water set up a booth in downtown Elora on June 13 to keep the conversation going about keeping local water sources clean and available to the community.
Spokesperson Donna McCaw said about six members manned the booth and talked about their most recent #StandWithUs campaign.
The group is asking people to take photos of themselves holding signs with messages about water such as: “water is a sacred trust,” and “Centre Wellington’s water is not for sale.”
McCaw said the group is worried about Nestlé Waters Canada’s intention to draw water from the Middlebrook Well near Elora. The company is seeking a water taking permit from the Ministry of the Environment but the province put a moratorium on permits until Oct. 1.
McCaw said Centre Wellington’s Water Supply Master Plan indicates the township needs four more wells to handle the growth that’s planned for the township, and the Tier 3 Water Study shows “significant risk for water quality,” she said.
“The township is supposed to double in size. Without water, how can we do that?” she asked.
Dr. Andreanne Simard, natural resource manager for Nestlé Waters, offered this emailed statement:
“Nestle’s goal is to work constructively with the communities in which we operate … The foundation of our entire approach is that local community water needs should, must and will always come first. That is a matter of complete consensus.”
Information about Save Our Water can be found at www.saveourwater.ca; for Nestlé visit www.nestle-waters.ca.
