Bottled Water
In an environmentally conscious state with a lackluster economy, Poland Spring has been a decades-long delight: a nonpolluting industry that relies on a renewable resource to provide hundreds of good-paying jobs in small towns where they are often hard to come by.
The clear plastic bottle of spring water with the dark green label has become as much a part of Maine's image as a pair of L.L. Bean boots. The company's longtime slogan says it all: "Poland Spring. What it means to be from Maine."
But the love affair is showing signs of strain.
Poland Spring is a target of a statewide citizen initiative campaign to impose what is thought to be a first-in-the-nation tax on the water it draws from Maine's underground aquifers. At the same time, the company's expansion plans are running into local opposition from residents who are annoyed by tanker truck traffic and worry about their groundwater drying up. http://polandspring.com
November 13, 2005 5:39 AM | Category: Water