Bubbling profits in bottled water risk sucking aquifers dry, says US expert

Posted June 1, 2007 in [Water]

Pia Akerman, May 7, 2007, The Australian - Insufficient regulation in the booming bottled water industry could see natural underground resources depleted.

Visiting American researcher and Fulbright scholar Sara Hughes said the "incredible" profits made by water companies should not exclude them from careful water management, particularly in times of drought.

"I think it's an industry that needs more scrutiny, not just for the environment but also for social impacts," Ms Hughes said. "It should be something that is happening sustainably, that doesn't self-implode because of a lack of scrutiny and self-regulation.

"Bottled water should be held to the same standards all other water users are held to."

The Australian bottled water market has grown by 42 per cent since 2002.

Ms Hughes has previously studied a case in Michigan where a bottled water company was taken to court over concerns about the company's impact on local groundwater.

"They did everything right according to what was on the books at the time, but some people in the community thought they were having a negative impact on the environment and drawing on downstream levels," Ms Hughes said.

The case forced legislative changes to increase regulation of bottled water companies.

Currently studying Australian water management policy, Ms Hughes has been comparing the effects of drought conditions here and in the US.

"What Australia has going for it is it's been able to make the kind of changes California is still stuck on," she said. "California hasn't made significant changes in its water management system.

"It's starting to do things like water trading and environmental water allocations, but Australia is further along."

Ms Hughes said a US move similar to the recent commonwealth takeover of the Murray-Darling river system seemed unlikely because of recent laws reducing federal power over water.

The Murray-Darling has seen record low inflows over the past 11 months.