Many are very upset with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) for granting Nestle a permit to increase its groundwater withdrawal for bottling drinking water. According to AccurWeather.com Nestle can now begin withdrawing water at a rate up to 400 gallons per minute from the White Pine Springs well located near Evart, Michigan, according to AccuWeather. They can withdraw more than 200,000 gallons of water per day under the Michigan Safe Drinking Water Act.
Protesters from all over Michigan have gathered because of the decision to grant Nestle permission to draw up 200,000 gallons of water per day. Just days before Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder announced the end of Flint’s bottled water distribution program.
The MDEQ determined that the application met the requirements for approval under the Michigan Safe Drinking Water Act.
More than 80,000 people have said they oppose the proposal, while only 75 people said they are in favor of it.
While Nestlé works to extract more clean water resources, residents in Michigan cities, most notably Flint, struggle to find what they believe to be affordable, safe water.
