GREEN CAPITAL$M
HSBC, Barclays challenged over bond linked to Vietnamese coal project




HSBC, Barclays challenged over bond linked to Vietnamese coal project

 Man walks past a sign of Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)

 at it's headquarters in Tokyo

Simon Jessop, Melanie Burton and Aaron Sheldrick
Wed, February 24, 2021, 3:09 AM

LONDON (Reuters) - HSBC and Barclays, which have pledged to stop financing new coal projects, have been challenged by a legal group over a Japanese bond it says will contribute to the financing of coal-fired power in Vietnam.

Both banks have come under pressure from investors keen to see them do more to help the world shift to a low-carbon economy and HSBC faces a shareholder vote over its fossil fuel financing at its annual meeting in April.

While both have policies to refrain from financing new coal plants, the complaint focuses on their alleged role in helping to fund others who go on to finance such projects.

Legal experts say this could be just the first in a series of challenges to banks over indirect financing at odds with their climate commitments.

The bond, a 250 million pound ($354.35 million) issue by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) earlier this month, will support expansion of the Vung Ang 2 power project, the Australian-based Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) said in a letter to the banks seen by Reuters.

HSBC declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. Barclays and JBIC did not immediately return requests for comment.

Acting on behalf of climate-focused think-tank the Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute (AFII), the EDO said it was concerned that the promotion and issuance of the bond had "entailed possible breaches" of the banks' legal duties.

It highlighted reported comments from both banks that they would no longer finance the expansion of coal-fired power stations.

While the JBIC money was not raised specifically to fund Vung Ang 2, the EDO said previous statements from JBIC have made clear the money would go into the pot from which funding for the Vietnamese project would be drawn.

The complaint also highlighted concerns with the bond prospectus, including that it did not explicitly mention the funds could be used to fund Vung Ang 2.

In view of JBIC's significant investments in fossil fuel projects, it said the prospectus failed to highlight the potential risk that some of the assets could become uneconomic given the world's transition to a low-carbon economy.

DENIAL OF BREACH

AFII founder Ulf Erlandsson said he had received an initial reply from both banks denying a breach of their coal policy. HSBC declined to comment on the prospectus while Barclays said the prospectus had met all applicable rules.

Erlandsson said he would go back to the banks to clarify elements of their response before deciding on the next steps. Previous EDO complaints have resulted in formal court challenges, including with Woodside Petroleum and Santos.

Thom Wetzer, professor of law and finance and director of the Oxford Sustainable Law Programme at the University of Oxford, said the EDO's letter was unlikely to be the last challenge to banks over climate.

"Investors expect banks to make credible commitments to decarbonise their business and to stick to them. When they fail to do so, and non-legal challenges do not sufficiently change that outcome, investors appear increasingly willing to take legal action to expose and end such greenwashing."

Xavier Lerin, senior banking analyst at ShareAction, which co-filed the shareholder resolution against HSBC, said the potential use of fungible proceeds from the bond to finance Vung Ang 2 raised questions over HSBC’s coal policy.

"HSBC says it is committed to help its clients transition. But how credible is this commitment if the bank continues to provide financing to top coal financiers and coal developers with absolutely no string(s) attached?"

($1 = 0.7055 pounds)

(Additional reporting by Nupur Anand; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Barbara Lewis)

Fukushima nuclear plant operator: Seismometers were broken



Japan Nuclear Fukushima

This aerial photo shows the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant operated by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) in Okuma town, Fukushima prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Feb. 14, 2021, a day after a strong earthquake. TEPCO says both of two seismometers at Unit 3, one of three melted reactors, had been out of order since last week and were not able to collect data when the powerful earthquake struck the area on Feb. 13, calling into question if the company's risk management has improved since the disaster. (Hironori Asakawa/Kyodo News via AP)

MARI YAMAGUCHI
Mon, February 22, 2021, 8:23 AM

TOKYO (AP) — The operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant said Monday that two seismometers at one of its three melted reactors have been out of order since last year and did not collect data when a powerful earthquake struck the area earlier this month.

The acknowledgement raised new questions about whether the company's risk management has improved since a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 destroyed much of the plant.

The malfunctioning seismometers surfaced during a Nuclear Regulation Authority meeting on Monday to discuss new damage at the plant resulting from a magnitude 7.3 quake that struck the region on Feb. 13. Cooling water and pressure levels fell in the Unit 1 and 3 reactors, indicating additional damage to their primary containment chambers.

The operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., has repeatedly been criticized for coverups and delayed disclosures of problems at the plant.

Regulatory officials asked TEPCO at the meeting why it did not have seismological data from the Unit 3 reactor for Saturday's quake, and utility officials acknowledged that both of its seismometers had failed — one in July and the other in October — and had never been repaired.

TEPCO also said that seismometers at all but two of the reactor buildings that survived the 2011 disaster were submerged by water from the tsunami and have never been replaced.

During Monday's meeting, regulatory officials said they were concerned about the declining water levels and pressure in the Unit 1 and 3 primary containment chambers because of the possibility that the quake had expanded the existing damage or opened new leakage paths, and urged the utility to closely check for any increased radiation levels in the ground water surrounding the reactor buildings.

TEPCO said no abnormality has been detected in water samples so far.

New damage could further complicate the plant's already difficult decommissioning process and add to the large amounts of contaminated water being stored at the plant.

Since the 2011 disaster, cooling water has been escaping constantly from the damaged primary containment vessels into the basements of reactor and turbine buildings, where the volume increases as groundwater seeps in. The water is pumped up and treated, then part of it is reused as cooling water, while the rest is stored in about 1,000 tanks.

TEPCO initially reported there was no abnormality at the plant from Saturday's earthquake. But on Monday, it said about 20 of the tanks had slid slightly due to the quake, a storage container carrying radioactive waste had tilted, and asphalt pavement at the plant was cracked.

GENTRIFICATION OF THE BADLANDS

Farmers chuckled when doctors bought this rural land for a racetrack — but they aren't laughing now

Kyle Bakx CBC

© Supplied by Badlands Motorsports Resort About 170 hectares of land near near Rosebud, Alta., about 100 kilometres east of Calgary, has been rezoned for development of a racetrack resort.

When a group of seven doctors bought a parcel of land in a remote river valley in Alberta more than 15 years ago to build a racetrack, farmers in the area could only chuckle in disbelief.

They found it impossible to imagine race cars skidding around multiple tracks on a plot of land in their secluded part of the Prairies, which rarely attracts visitors on the gravel roads that wind through the deep valley.

What may have seemed like a farfetched idea at the time is now much closer to reality, as those doctors hope to break ground on the $500-million racing resort this summer.

Badlands Motorsports Resorthas said it has all of its permits in place, but just needs to raise more investment before the first phase of the complex can be built near Rosebud, about 100 kilometres east of Calgary.

However, the process hasn't been easy and local opposition remains.

Dozens of farmers who were skeptical all those years ago have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and other expenses in their battle to stop the project from proceeding. Their latest salvo includes a Federal Court challenge asking for Ottawa to intervene and stop the development to protect a threatened bird species.
New racing venue

In 2005, Calgary radiologist Dr. Jay Zelazo and some of his colleagues in the medical field came up with the idea to build a track to race street-legal vehicles, since they enjoyed driving at high speeds and the only track near the city was struggling to stay afloat. Race City Speedway eventually closed in 2011.

They chose the property near Rosebud since there were few other parcels of land on the market that were the appropriate size.

The early concept grew over time to include four tracks, a hotel, residential development, go-kart track and other facilities. The Badlands Motorsports Resort could employ as many as 200 people.

"There's so many vehicles and people with vehicles, they just cannot use them for their potential. I mean ... that's what this idea is, is safe track driving," said James Zelazo, Jay's father, who is the project's chief financial officer.

© Kyle Bakx/CBC A few natural gas wells are located on the property, which has been used in the past to grow crops and raise cattle.

The first phase would involve constructing one track and temporary buildings. The cost would be about $30 million, said Zelazo. The developers also have to pave the road leading to the site, which would cost about $15 million. Zelazo is hopeful the provincial government may cover that cost.

So far, the group has raised about $5 million, he said.

About 250 people, mostly locals, have each already made a $1,000 deposit toward a potential membership, he said.

The racetrack could provide a boost for tourism in the area, which includes the Royal Tyrrell Museum, home to one of the world's largest displays of dinosaurs.

"I think this is an opportunity for a different segment of the population to come and enjoy this area and, if it gets built like the picture that I'm looking at indicates, I think it'll be a real jewel in Alberta," said Darryl Drohomerski, chief administrative officer of the town of Drumheller, which is located about 35 kilometres northeast of Rosebud.

The Alberta government did not respond to requests for comment about the proposed project.© Kyle Bakx/CBC The racetrack developer is required to widen and pave this road, which is estimated to cost about $15 million.

Entrenched opposition

The local opposition is easy to see as many "No race track" signs are visible on fence posts throughout the area.

Wendy Clark is one of the farmers spearheading the effort to halt the development. She has about 800 hectares of grain fields in the region.

"If you live here," she said, "you kind of instinctively come to the realization that it's your job to take care of this river valley."

She said she's worried about the impact on the land, the water and the wildlife.

"We're all just so angry," she said, calling the project an "intrusive development."© Kyle Bakx/CBC These signs can be seen throughout the Rosebud area.

She and other landowners have objected to the racetrack to every level of government. So far, they have only been able to slow down the process, not stop it.

At the provincial Environmental Appeals Board, Clark and others argue the racetrack will cause irreparable damage to the environment, since the developer plans to infill two wetlands and modify three others. The appeal process is ongoing.

The farmers also want the federal government to take action to halt the development to protect the bank swallow population. The small, brown and white songbirds were designated as a threatened species in 2013 under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA).

The bank swallow has suffered a "severe long-term decline amounting to a loss of 98% of its Canadian population over the last 40 years," the SARA website says.

As a threatened species, the bank swallow is protected by the federal government.

The landowners filed an application to the Federal Court of Canada last year to force Ottawa to prepare a recovery plan for the birds and designate critical habitat areas. A date for a virtual hearing has been set for late April.

"You're putting a racetrack in between the nesting sites of these bank swallows and their foraging territory. So, what do you think is going to happen to the bank swallows?" said Clark.

In a statement to CBC News, Environment Canada said the development of a recovery strategy for the bank swallow is ongoing. That strategy will identify the threats to the species and critical habitat. However, the government said the land-use authorization for the proposed racetrack is a provincial matter.

Badlands Motorsports Resort maintains it has the right to move ahead with the project because the property is private land. The river valley will be protected and the wetlands are often dry, said JamesZelazo.

The bank swallows have nests across the road from the racetrack development, but Zelazo said he hasn't seen any of the birds himself, so he doesn't know if they still inhabit the area.

The landowners who oppose the project made an offer to purchase the land from the racetrack developer in 2013, but Zelazo said his group wasn't interested.

If the farmers continue to oppose the project and cause further financial costs and delays, he may consider launching legal action to recover those expenses, he said.

A separate $25-million racetrack development north of Calgary was supposed to open last year, but has also faced delays.

© Kyle Bakx/CBC Bank swallows dig nesting burrows in eroding vertical banks. This photo is taken across the road from the Badlands Motorsports property.

BHP and Aboriginal group probe fallen rock shelter in Western Australia

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - BHP Group has launched a joint investigation with an Indigenous group into what caused a rock fall at a culturally significant rock shelter at its iron ore operations in Western Australia, both groups said.

© Reuters/MELANIE BURTON A tonne of nickel powder made by BHP Group sits in a warehouse at its Nickel West division, south of Perth

BHP discovered the damage to the site of significance to the Banjima people on Jan. 29, as part of monitoring at its Mining Area C operations. It informed its Banjima partners and the groups agreed to set up a probe into the incident, BHP President Minerals Australia, Edgar Basto said in a statement.

“This site is not part of current mining operations. The cause of this rock fall is not known," Basto said in a statement late on Tuesday.

Mining Area C is part of BHP's $3.4 billion South Flank replacement project in the state's Pilbara region.

Miners are facing closer scrutiny over what they do to protect sacred Indigenous sites in the wake of Rio Tinto's destruction of two ancient, sacred rock shelters at Juukan Gorge last May. The mining company had obtained a permit to destroy the sites.

Basto and Brandon Craig, head of BHP's Western Australian iron ore operations, met with Banjima Elders as part of the Banjima Heritage Advisory Council that BHP set up last year following the Juukan Gorge incident.

"We will continue to work with the Banjima in a spirit of respect and cooperation,” BHP said.

The Banjima Native Title Aboriginal Corporation said that it had met with BHP executives on Feb. 11 to clarify details in an initial report, and carry the investigation forward.

(Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)

Fortescue apologises for clearing land on Aboriginal sacred site

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia's Fortescue Metals Group has apologised to an Aboriginal group for clearing land on a heritage site while flouting a government condition for representatives of the community to be present when the damage took place.

© Reuters/David Gray FILE PHOTO: File picture of a giant 

excavator loading a mining truck at the Fortescue Solomon iron

 ore mine south of Port Hedland

It is the week's second such incident, despite pressure on Australian iron ore miners to show they have improved practices to manage important sites after Rio Tinto destroyed two sacred rock shelters for a mine expansion last May.

Fortescue had state government permission to clear the land in the Weelamurra Creek area registered as sacred to the Wintawari Guruma people, on condition that community elders were present to perform salvage and cultural rites, four documents reviewed by Reuters showed.

But an administrative error led to land clearing works earlier than scheduled on Feb. 1 in the absence of the representatives, Fortescue Chief Executive Elizabeth Gaines said in a statement.

"I have spoken to Wintawari Gurama Aboriginal Corporation (WGAC) Chairman Glen Camille regarding this incident to personally express my regret and sincere apology on behalf of Fortescue," she said.

"We have carried out a full investigation into the matter which has shown that this unfortunately occurred as a result of an administrative error...We have paused all clearing works at this site as we work with WGAC on the matter."

Gaines did not provide detail on the nature of the administrative error.

In a statement, the community corporation said, "WGAC members are disappointed by FMG’s actions, particularly after investing so much time negotiating an outcome with them that included elders being present during the destruction.

It added, "WGAC is concerned by yet another example of poor conduct by a mining company and the apparent disregard for Aboriginal cultural heritage."

WGAC chairman Glenn Camille requested that the Western Australian government prosecute Fortescue, in a letter to Minster for Aboriginal Affairs Ben Wyatt, reviewed by Reuters.

"We sincerely hope that you and the next Minister for Aboriginal Affairs decide to send a message to the mining industry about the importance of protecting our Indigenous heritage."

In a statement, Wyatt said that he had been advised that an alleged breach was under official investigation.

"The matter is being treated very seriously and with utmost priority by the Department. I trust that the investigation will be managed expeditiously and concluded swiftly."

Earlier this week, BHP Group said it was investigating how a rock fall damaged a registered site at its South Flank operations that was not part of active mining operations.

Last year's Rio Tinto destruction cost its chief executive and two senior leaders their jobs, and sparked a parliamentary inquiry.

(Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Louise Heavens)

 

Nestlé Nominates Lindiwe Majele Sibanda To Its Board of Directors

Published on Feb 22 2021 7:59 AM in A-Brands tagged: Nestlé / AGM / Board of Directors / Diversity & Inclusion

Nestlé has nominated professor Lindiwe Majele Sibanda for election to its board of directors, scheduled at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 15 April 2021.

Currently, Majele Sibanda serves as the director and chairwoman of the African Research Universities Alliance Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Food Systems at the University of Pretoria, South Africa,

Her nomination follows board member Ursula Burns' decision to not stand for re-election.

Paul Bulcke, chairman of the Nestlé board of directors, thanked Burns for her engagement, expert advice and valuable perspectives during her tenure.

'Invaluable Guidance'

Commenting on Majele Sibanda's nomination, Bulcke said, "With her hands-on farming experience and expertise in environmental sustainability, public policy, and sustainable food systems, she will provide invaluable guidance along our journey to build regenerative food systems at scale.

"Her broad experience across the African continent as well as across the globe will enrich the Board's insights."

With Majele Sibanda, the Nestlé Board will comprise 14 members, of which twelve are independent directors.

Nestlé added that it aims to continuously add diverse experiences and unique perspectives to its board, as well as to enhance its cultural and gender diversity.

An Experienced Professional

Majele Sibanda also serves as the co-chairwoman of the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome, Italy.

Previously, she served as the vice-president, country support, policy and partnerships for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa in Kenya.

For 13 years, she worked in South Africa as the CEO and head of mission of the pan-African Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network, which operates in 19 African countries.

Between 2016 to 2018, she served on the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems and a member of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research Policy Advisory Council.

She serves as the managing director of Linds Agriculture Services in Harare, Zimbabwe.

© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.

#WATERISLIFE

Permission granted: SRWMD opens the faucets for Nestlé

Suzette Cook | Mainstreet Daily News Reporter
Feb 23, 2021 

Ginnie SpringsPhoto by Zoe Esteban / Shutterstock

The Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) board approved today a permit that grants Nestlé access to more than 1 million gallons of Ginnie Springs water a day.

The decision came after dozens of residents, scientists and springs conservationists spoke of the negative impact the removal of the water from the Floridan aquifer would have on an already ailing system that experts say is in state of recovery.

In addition to the public comments against approval, Alachua County expressed its concerns in a letter to the board before its decision, saying the removal of water affects Alachua County water systems.

"We are concerned with potential negative impacts on Poe Springs and other water resources within the Lower Santa Fe watershed," the letter said.

In the letter Alachua County asked the board to issue a temporary moratorium on consumptive use permits to allow time for more study of the “reasonable beneficial use” and “public interest” criteria—and to gather broad public support.

"With the current outcry from the public, it seems prudent to clearly define and understand these prongs of the [consumptive use permit] process,” the letter said.

Alachua County cited the status report published earlier this month showing conditions in the Lower Santa Fe have improved since 2014, but it said the matter needs more study: “It will be important to clearly demonstrate how this improvement was achieved, as some members of the public currently believe that the criteria were just simply changed to achieve this result.”

The Alachua County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) was still in session when the water district issued its decision, allowing the board to discuss the approval in the evening portion of the meeting.

The BOCC agenda has "Seven Springs Consumptive Use Permit Discussion" listed as item nine. "If a legal challenge is pursued, the CAO will need a budget for hiring legal and technical professional services," the fiscal consideration states.

The recommended action proposed on the agenda states, "Direct County staff to follow both the consumptive use permit process for this application and the process for establishing minimum flows and levels for the Santa Fe River. Report back to the Commission with updates on any relevant action taken by the Water Management District."

In a statement provided to Mainstreet Daily News, Nestlé Water North America spokesperson Lisa Garcia said the 984,000 gallons per day allowed under the new permit is less than its previous permit and that it represents less than one-quarter of 1 percent of SRWMD's groundwater.

"Spring water is a renewable resource when managed responsibly," she said, pointing to studies that found Nestlé's withdrawals would not harm the area. "We support the science behind the Seven Springs permit application and will continue to take great care to help Seven Springs Water Company as needed to ensure that the water withdrawn from Ginnie Springs that we buy will not adversely impact the spring, river, or surrounding wetlands.”




Suzette Cook
Mainstreet Daily News Reporter
Suzette Cook is a Mainstreet Daily News reporter who has been a community journalist for more than 30 years.

#WATERISLIFE

 Bottling of Florida’s spring water to expand after Nestle given permit extension

Ginnie Springs (Photo by (WT-de) Mistoffeles via Wikimedia Commons)

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Nestle Waters North America will be able to ramp up bottling to nearly 1 million gallons of water a day from the Ginnie Springs area after a permit was approved Tuesday over the objections of opponents who said it will continue the degradation of the state’s natural springs and rivers.

After hours of public comment, mostly opposed to the proposal, the Suwannee River Water Management District Governing Board approved a permit application from Seven Springs Water Co. that will help Nestle expand its bottled-water operations in Gilchrist County.

Board members said the vote was taken under protest to keep open the ability to challenge an administrative law judge’s recommendation backing the permit. Yet a couple of board members said after the vote the issue has been vetted for nearly two years, and they weren’t ready to spend more on a challenge.

“If we go back and spend thousands of dollars on appeal on a technicality, I’m not in favor of that,” board Member Larry Thompson said.

Environmentalists, considering their own legal challenge, said approval of the application will lead to further degradation of springs and rivers that are already requiring millions of dollars in restoration efforts. They also contended the permit, which had a $115 application fee, involves giving away natural resources without adequate compensation.

“This is not something that will benefit in any way, shape or form this county and any other county,” professional mermaid Michelle Colson said. “Nestle already bottles water in five different springs to be exact, and they don’t need this water, putting our spring water in bottles that are then going to end up in the rivers and the oceans, in landfills. It’s just not a good use for our spring water that as we all know is already in danger.”

Joe Little, an attorney representing Florida Defenders of the Environment and Our Santa Fe River, said his groups will discuss plans to legally challenge the permit for failing to provide a monetary benefit to the state as Nestle will pay Seven Springs to draw a projected 400 million gallons of water a year from the Ginnie Springs area.

“If the district grants this permit without requiring it to be amended to provide for payment of substantial amounts of money to the state of Florida, it is not consistent with the public interest of Florida,” Little said.

State Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, said the decision is a step backward in revitalizing state waters.

“The fact that a private company with a small permit fee can be granted permission to pump upwards of a million gallons of water constantly is something that every Floridian should be upset by, no matter where you live in the state,” Eskamani said in an online news conference after the meeting.

Doug Manson, an attorney representing Seven Springs, disagreed with people who contended the permit will result in negative environmental impacts. Manson said water flow issues were thoroughly reviewed by staff members of the water management district.

“They found that there wouldn’t be environmental impacts, there was not going to be any issue with the pumpage and reductions in spring flow or the river,” Manson said. “So, those issues were looked at by staff before you got to the (administrative) proceeding.”

Manson added, “We believe that after two years of going through this, an immense amount of money that it took from Seven Springs to be able to defend the permit, that at this point, there should be a finality to it.”

Nestle factory employees, who expressed concerns about the future of the plant and their jobs, and the county government-backed the permit.

Gilchrist County Administrator Bobby Crosby said the bottling permit is tied to $545,783, or about 7%, of annual ad valorem and personal property taxes.

“With around 35% of our citizens only paying (property) taxes, that 7% is a very large number to us,” Crosby said.

Seven Springs applied to draw 984,000 gallons a day from the aquifer that serves as a source for the Ginnie Springs area and pipe it to the Nestle plant.

Seven Springs, which is headed by owners of the private Ginnie Springs Outdoors park along the Santa Fe River, has an expiring 20-year permit that allows 1.152 million gallons of water a day to be pumped. Until the new permit application was filed, top demand for water at the Seven Springs site reached 265,900 gallons a day.

Nestle plans to expand output of the plant by updating one old production line and adding two new production lines over the next five years, the life of the permit.

The water management district last year indicated it would not approve the permit, spurring Seven Springs to file a challenge in the state Division of Administrative Hearings. In part, the district pointed to the water being used by Nestle, while the permit would be held by Seven Springs.

Last month, Administrative Law Judge G.W. Chisenhall issued a 44-page order recommending that the district approve the permit, writing Seven Springs, which has supplied water to the local bottling plant since 1998, has “provided reasonable assurances, supported by competent, substantial evidence during the final hearing” that the plant would be able to process the requested amount of water.

“Seven Springs provided competent, substantial, and unrebutted evidence of the contractual obligation between it and Nestle, and of the obligation for all water to be used at the … bottling plant,” Chisenhall wrote. “Thus, the district now has reasonable assurances that all of the water withdrawn by Seven Springs will be utilized for a beneficial use, i.e., bottled water for personal consumption.”

Under administrative law, Chisenhall’s recommended order had to go back to the water management district for final action.

Copyright 2021 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jim Turner

Jim is a Capitol reporter for the News Service of Florida, providing coverage on issues ranging from transportation and the environment to Legislative and Cabinet

#WATERISLIFE

Will Nestle’s Plans To Bottle More Water Put A Popular Florida Spring At Risk?

WUSF Public Media - WUSF 89.7 | By Oscar Corral
Published February 23, 2021 

John Moran
/SPECIAL TO THE MIAMI HERALD

 The crowd enjoys Devil’s Eye Spring at Ginnie Springs Outdoors in 2017.

Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson painted as a Lincoln Road artist at the South Florida Arts Center in the early 1990s, living the “wild” life as a single creative on South Beach.

But that lifestyle did not last long for her. She eventually settled down and moved to High Springs in North Florida, the heart of springs country, to raise her family and start a business. In the process, she has become one of the most fierce, outspoken advocates for Florida’s unique freshwater springs.

With more than 1,000 artesian springs, located roughly between Orlando and Pensacola, Florida is home to the world’s largest and highest concentration of springs.

This week, Malwitz-Jipson will be leading dozens of people appearing before the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) in Live Oak to oppose a permit application that would allow Nestle Waters North America to pump and bottle about a million gallons a day from Ginnie Springs, a popular diving and swimming spot. The final vote is expected on Wednesday or Thursday.

“I don’t think they are managing the water resources at all,” Malwitz-Jipson said of the water management district. “All of our springs are losing flow. It is abysmal. They’re just maximizing profits for private entities that require large scale consumptive use permits.”

The vote on the Nestle permit has garnered international attention, primarily because it is seen by some independent scientists and activists as a bellwether for the future of the springs. And being Florida, even mermaids are among the activists opposing the permit.

The springs were Florida’s first tourist destinations — Weeki Wachee, White Springs, Wakulla Springs and Silver Springs are among the most famous — and some that have not been destroyed are still popular attractions north of Disney World.

As the state’s population has boomed in recent decades, the ripple effects of sprawling development are taking a toll on the health — and in some cases, existence — of the springs. Some scientists fear the springs may ultimately disappear if Florida does not take action to course-correct.

“We’re facing a bleak future if we continue on this path of not controlling how much groundwater we allow people to pump,” said Robert L. Knight, Ph.D. executive director of the Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute and one of the nation’s leading spring scientists. “The current government leaders in Florida have less concern about environmental issues than previous administrations.”

The struggle of the springs is examined in a new documentary, The Fellowship of the Springs — a two-hour, two-part series scheduled to air in April on WPBT2 and other PBS affiliates around Florida.

Filmed over a two-year period by Miami-based production company Explica Media, the in-depth documentary explores the role and relevance of the springs today, and how growing impacts from some of the state’s biggest industries — agriculture, construction, mining — are affecting them. (The author of this article produced and directed the documentary).

At the heart of the film’s narrative is the underdog fight to save the springs, led by Malwitz-Jipson and a group of activists and grassroots organizations. Their argument is that the springs and the ecosystems created by them are under existential threat from pollution and overpumping of groundwater, according to findings by independent scientists.

Of 33 first magnitude springs in Florida, 21 are located in SRWMD, including Ichetucknee, the Ginnie group and Manatee Springs. First magnitude springs gush a minimum of 65 million gallons of water a day, around 100 Olympic-sized swimming pools. But some of the bigger ones, such as Rainbow, Wakulla and Silver can pump enough water in a day to fill up the Houston astrodome twice over.

But many of Florida’s springs are experiencing on average more than a 25 percent decline in flow, said Knight.

TAINTED WATERS

Additionally, many springs’ natural clear blue color is tinting to green under relentless algae blooms caused by nitrate pollution from the agriculture industry — both the biggest consumer of water and the biggest contributor of nitrate pollution to the springs in the SRWMD, according to research conducted by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Springs Institute. Other significant sources of nitrates are septic tanks and urban land uses.

The vote this week on the Nestle permit pits the Wray family, owners of the popular Ginnie Springs Outdoors, against springs and water advocates. Risa Wray is a principal of Seven Springs Water company, which is entering into an agreement with Nestle, a multinational food and beverage conglomerate.

Nestle is expected to pay Seven Springs millions of dollars a year to pump the water, Malwitz-Jipson said. By comparison, Seven Springs will pay a one-time, $115 permit fee to the state of Florida to allow for Nestle’s pumping. After that, the water is free.

The Ginnie Springs bottling plant has operated since 1998 but Nestle bought it in 2019 and hopes to dramatically expand pumping there in a business that has been incredibly lucrative for the company and others in the bottled water industry. This week, Nestle coincidentally announced it would be selling its North American spring water brands, which include regional brands in other states and Canada, for $4.3 billion.

In an emailed response to written questions, Risa Wray said a non-disclosure agreement prevented her from saying how much Seven Springs will get paid by Nestle for the water. She said the increase in pumping would not harm the springs.

“My family will always take great care to ensure the amount of water we sell is sustainable and will not adversely impact the springs or surrounding wetlands,” Wray wrote. “Recent science shows our water withdrawals have no adverse impact to Ginnie Springs, the river, or surrounding wetlands.”

She also said her company has a track record of environmental compliance.

“We know Ginnie Springs is a healthy spring,” she wrote. “My company and family have always been protective of the land.”

Nestle Waters North America did not respond to requests for comment for the documentary. But NWNA Natural Resource Manager George Ring spoke publicly about the permit at a town hall meeting in Fort White in late 2019. He said a study showed that pumping a million gallons a day from Ginnie Springs would have no adverse impact on its flow or wildlife. Nestle already bottles water at several other springs in Florida as do other companies.

“The amount of flow that we are talking about here,” he said, “comes out to be about a quarter of a percent of the overall flow. Do we have problems with groundwater? Do we have problems with pumping? We may. This isn’t really the issue, is it?”

PAST PROTECTIONS FAILED

There have been past political pushes to protect Florida’s springs. As governor from 1999 to 2007, Jeb Bush launched an initiative that produced studies documenting the declining water flows and increasing pollution as well as recommendations from scientists and environmentalists to combat the issues.

“Think of all the water that is mined here in Florida and shipped all around the United States,” the former governor said last year in an interview for the documentary. “It’s probably not the greatest use of the resource.”

But bottled water companies continued to pump from springs while he was in office and lawmakers failed to support most proposals from Bush’s springs initiative. Former Gov. Charlie Crist, who followed Bush, once floated a 6-cents-a-gallon state tax on water used by commercial bottlers — money that could help fund springs restoration and protections. It sunk.

In 2010, Florida elected governor Rick Scott. He defunded the springs program and slashed budgets for water management districts statewide.

During his term, the Suwannee River Water Management District budget plunged from about $35 million in 2008 to about $12 million in 2013, records show. And dozens of staff and scientists were laid off from there and other water management districts in north Florida, said Jim Gross, a professional geologist who was fired from the St. Johns River Water Management District after speaking out about the dangers of over-pumping of ground water.

This 60 percent-plus budget decline was reflected in canceled, frozen or postponed projects intended to help the springs and other natural places, as well as the loss of institutional knowledge, Gross said.

He said the water management districts have become politicized and are engaging in faulty, bad faith science to interpret data to justify their continued issuing of consumptive use permits.

“A lot of what the science has to say is in conflict with what we’re hearing coming out of the front office,” Gross said in an interview for the documentary. “Politics has dramatically altered the way we do business in these water management districts.”

Scott, now a U.S. senator representing Florida, declined to be interviewed for the documentary, and did not answer specific questions sent to him through his communications office. Instead, he issued a brief written statement.

“Under Senator Scott’s leadership as Governor, Florida’s annual investments to preserve the environment and protect its iconic beaches, pristine springs and the Florida Everglades increased by $1 billion,” Scott said through a spokesperson. “In 2016, then-Governor Scott signed legislation to create an annual dedicated source of funding to restore the Everglades and to protect Florida’s springs. He also invested more money into Florida’s springs than any other administration in Florida history.”

Many activists scoff at what they consider spin from Scott, saying his priority was always protecting industry and business.

NEEDED: TOUGHER RULES ON USE

Some advocates say that under Scott, the water permitting system in Florida was redesigned to adopt loose standards for issuing consumptive water use permits and reduce the authority of state regulators. Water management district board members, who make the final decision on permits, are appointed by the governor.

Lee Constantine, a former Republican state senator and the vice chairman of the Florida Conservation Coalition, said water management districts need to clamp down on issuing consumptive use permits. He said one good way to do it would be to reconsider charging for consumptive use permits, even just five cents for every thousand gallons.

“It [water] is an asset of the people,” Constantine said in an interview for the documentary. “As we pump out millions and millions of gallons, our rivers aren’t flowing, our springs are depleted and that is harming the entire ecosystem of Florida.”

Records show that in Georgia, which shares some watersheds with the state of Florida, all entities with consumptive use permits are mandated to have meters to monitor water use; and agricultural operations that have consumptive use permits are mandated to adopt best management practices. Georgia has also implemented moratoriums on new consumptive water use permits in certain sensitive watersheds, records show.

In some areas, Florida has pushed best management practices for how farms and groves use fertilizer to help reduce water pollution. But critics say those standards are often set by industries themselves and are difficult to enforce. There is also no statewide requirement to use meters to monitor how much water big users are drawing from springs and aquifers.

Katelyn Potter, a spokeswoman for the SRWMD, said in an interview for the documentary, “anything is on the table,” when it comes to new regulatory processes for minimum flows and levels (MFLs). “But we leave that up the authority of our governing board to make those final decisions.”

Bush, who was the first Florida governor to establish protections and programs to help the springs, said the springs need a plan similar to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan.

“Just like the Everglades is a very unique ecosystem, so too are the springs that are to the north of them. And I think we have a duty to protect them,” Bush said. “I think the Everglades is a great model, actually, for a sustained effort to protect the springs.”

Just as iconic author Marjory Stoneman Douglas once rallied South Florida to protect the Everglades, Malwitz-Jipson is today a leading voice to protect the springs.

She is known throughout North Florida for showing up at obscure public meetings, and is sometimes the only person present speaking out for Florida’s springs. She said the model where a multinational corporation can pay pocket change so that a few people can get rich off the public’s water is destroying the springs.

“We protect these incredible waterways in the state of Florida where the magic exists out in the woods,” she said. “ A corporation like that is not beneficial and reasonable, and it does not serve the public interest and it has the potential to harm existing users.”

Many springs in Florida have already been destroyed. Places like Kissingen Spring, White Springs, and Worthington Springs used to support robust tourism economies. Now they are gone.

SRWMD Deputy Executive Director Tom Mirti said in an interview for the documentary that the conditions of the springs in his district are “not particularly good.”

“We’ve got challenges with nutrient contamination in the springs, both from nitrogen and phosphorous,” he said. “And then we’ve seen similarly over a long period of time looking at groundwater levels, there’s been a decline in aquifer levels on a regional basis across the district.”

In March of last year, staff at the SRWMD recommended that the board deny the Nestle permit. But on the eve of the vote, Nestle sued to have the case heard before an administrative law judge, which ultimately delayed the vote for a year. Now, the judge has recommended that the district approve the permit. The final decision is up to the board.

Of the seven members who make up the board of the SRWMD, several own or work in businesses that benefit from consumptive water use, like agriculture, development and construction. One member is a pawn broker. None are scientists, or work in the tourism industry. And none represent state or county parks, where most major springs are located.

“The governor appoints the board members of the water management districts who make the overall decisions,” said springs activist Tessa Skiles in an interview for the documentary. “As we stand now, there’s one environmentalist on one water management district board, out of all five. The rest are farmers, developers, people that are benefiting from consuming our water.”

Oscar Corral, a former Miami Herald reporter, is the director and producer of the upcoming documentary series The Fellowship of the Springs.

John Moran is a Florida nature photographer and a leading chronicler of Florida’s springs.

This story was produced in partnership with the Florida Climate Reporting Network, a multi-newsroom initiative formed to cover the impacts of climate change in the state.

#WATERISLIFE

State OKs Nestlé plan to tap 1 million gallons a day from Florida spring for bottled water


BY BY APRIL RUBIN
FEBRUARY 23, 2021 04:35 PM,

The Fellowship of the Springs documentary
Oscar Corral, a former Miami Herald reporter, directed and produced the upcoming documentary series The Fellowship of the Springs. BY OSCAR CORRAL

LIVE OAK — In the face of stark opposition from environmentalists, a state water board on Tuesday unanimously approved “with protest” Nestlé’s bid to pump one million gallons daily for its bottled water business from one of the treasured natural springs along the Santa Fe River in north-central Florida.

Critics promised immediately to appeal the decision on Ginnie Springs by the seven-member governing board of the Suwannee River Water Management District. The approval was expected but still a blow to activists, who said further pumping of the crystal blue waters would put at risk the health of an already taxed river and a network of springs that make up its surrounding ecosystem.

At nearly 60 feet deep, set among a 200-acre forest, Ginnie Springs is one of Florida’s most popular freshwater diving locations and enormously popular among swimmers, paddlers and naturalists.


The decision, after a four-hour board meeting and about 19,000 written public comments to the district, culminated a fight that extended almost two years and drew international attention.

But environmental activists say they will continue to work to stop the permit. Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson of the group Our Santa Fe River said advocates’ next step will be to sue the district.

“The communities do not want this,” she said.

The crowd enjoys Devil’s Eye Spring at Ginnie Springs Outdoors in 2017. John Moran SPECIAL TO THE MIAMI HERALD






The district previously indicated it would not approve the “consumptive use” permit, but a state administrative judge, G.W. Chisenhall, last year backed a legal appeal. He ruled that the bottled water would be of “beneficial use,” one of the legal standards in such cases, and ordered the board to reconsider.

Tom Reeves, the board’s lawyer, said that ruling effectively tied the board’s hands, meaning the conditions that they could use to deny were out of their jurisdiction.

That led the board Tuesday to approve the permit benefiting Nestlé but “with protest” — a move that technically preserves legal options to continue appealing the decision. But Reeves told the board there was no requirement to take further steps, and some board members said after the vote they were ready to stop fighting.

Still, Doug Manson, the attorney for the local company, Seven Springs Water Co., which sought the pumping permit, objected to the provisional nature of the approval. “There should be a finality to this,” he said.

The board’s decision renews an expired water use permit for Seven Springs to provide water for bottling operations to Nestlé, which produces the Zephyrhills and Pure Life brands. The company had previously been withdrawing water from the springs in lower amounts. Nestlé, a Swiss multinational food and beverage company, said the springs could accommodate its pumping and pledged to work with local officials to ensure the spring remains sustainable.

Ahead of the decision, Nestlé had been airing political advertisements on network television stations across the region noting that it employs hundreds of people as part of its bottling business.

The Ginnie Springs bottling plant has operated since 1998, but Nestlé bought it in 2019 and aims to dramatically expand pumping there in a business that has been incredibly lucrative for the company and others in the bottled water industry. Last week, Nestlé coincidentally announced it would be selling its North American spring water brands, which include regional brands in other states and Canada, for $4.3 billion.

The debate laid bare competing public interests in Florida: Successive Republican governors and the GOP-controlled Legislature have aggressively courted economic development in the face of criticism they have been insensitive to environmental threats from corporate activities. Many residents consistently express they care deeply about the state’s natural habitats, including its beaches, natural springs and the Everglades wetlands that extend across South Florida.

All the board’s members were appointed by Florida’s most recent Republican governors, Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis. Scott’s environmental record has been criticized as dismal. DeSantis has acknowledged climate change threats and pushed some Everglades restoration projects but he also signed into law a measure last year that prohibits local governments from granting the environment legal rights. That law, intended to tackle water pollution, foreclosed as a legal strategy the so-called Rights of Nature movement to improve environmental protections for rivers, springs, mountains, forests and glaciers.

A wide range of critics on Tuesday urged the board to deny the permit, including local and state environmentalists, generations of Floridians, a Weeki Wachee springs mermaid, University of Florida students and professors, and out-of-state callers.

Ginnie Springs is just one of 11 springs in the area, with a combined discharge of 260 million gallons per day, according to figures from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. But Michael Roth, Our Santa Fe River president, said the system is already over-tapped. He said consumption permits would have to be reduced by 30% for the springs to be healthy again.

“It is self-renewing, but there’s a limit,” he said. “And we are way beyond that limit.”

John S. Quarterman of the Waterkeeper Alliance, told the board that if it had blocked the request for Nestlé, the board would almost certainly be sued by corporate interests and DeSantis would fire members from their political appointments. But he urged them to block the permit anyway.

“Do you really need this job?” he asked. He urged them: “At some point it’s best just to stand on principle.”

Bottled water is optional in most of the U.S., so that is where environmental activists are drawing the line, said Ryan Smart, executive director of statewide group Florida Springs Council.

“If they’re going to grant this permit, then what permit could ever be denied?” he asked.

Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson, a leading advocate for Florida springs, at a protest in High Springs in 2019. John Moran SPECIAL TO THE MIAMI HERALD

There was some support for the deal as well. Employment was important to three workers of a Gilchrist County Nestlé bottling factory who backed the permit.

“For generations, our company has contributed to the state of the strong corporate citizen, providing good paying jobs with benefits in a socially responsible, clean manufacturing industry that supports our families and local community,” said factory manager Lane Tuten, who brought a poster with an image of the factory and employees’ signatures.

The board’s chairwoman, Virginia H. Johns, urged people attending the meeting to stay polite, alluding to the tense atmosphere over the decision. “The meeting is not a place for political endorsement,” she said.

Despite the tensions, the meeting remained civil. The pandemic also limited attendance. None of the board members wore masks, but each sat at separate desks at a distance from each other at the head of the hearing room. About a dozen others spread throughout the room wore masks.

People who wanted to deliver public comments before the vote were able to dial in on a conference line, leading to awkward technical glitches and delays waiting for speakers to unmute their phones or pull over while driving before they spoke. Over hours, she called dozens of names of people who had asked to speak but weren’t on the line.

“I think everybody is out enjoying the sunshine today,” Johns said.

This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.