OSCEOLA TOWNSHIP, MI (MPRN)-- Federal scientists are in Osceola County to monitor water levels affected by water withdrawals from Nestle Water North America—a move environmental groups say should have happened months ago.
The U.S. Geological Survey has begun monitoring water levels at Nestle’s wells in Osceola Township. Nestle says they requested that the USGS come in to understand long-term water availability and environmental uses.
Some environmental groups say Nestle should have made the request long ago.
Peggy Case is the president of Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation, one of the groups concerned with Nestle’s pumping, and, with what has been until now, its self-monitoring.
“We are hoping that bringing in the USGS will provide a much more advanced and much more independent monitoring system then they have had so far. Nestle has no choice they have to set up a different system because the one they are using is really flawed,” she says.
Case says Nestle currently does not monitor areas that are affected by water pumping. She says it is critical that the USGS monitors areas in the headwaters that have been affected by pumping.