The G8 Summit is keen on bottled water, if the location of its summits is anything to go by. The 2003 Summit was held at Evian, home to French company Danone's major brand. This year the G8 is coming to Gleneagles, source of the water for Highland Spring.

Meanwhile, the UN estimates that 1.2 billion do not have access to safe drinking water, and the big four water bottling companies are seeking to deepen their control over this essential resource, depleting the water sources for local communities, and flying thousands of tons of water around the world at great cost to the climate.

The global market in bottled water
Bottled water is big business and a major growth area. The global water market is currently worth $46 billion, and is dominated by food giants Nestlé and Danone, and soft drinks companies Coca Cola and Pepsi Co. The industry is growing at 20% a year and is set to take over carbonated soft drinks as the world's number one beverage. With deep concerns over the future of the worlds water supplies, it is no surprise that, along with massive privatisation of public water services, huge growth is projected in the bottled water industry. The big four water bottling companies are seeking to buy up smaller bottlers across the globe. Access to safe water is increasingly becoming a privilege of those that can pay.

Squeezing communities dry
All four of the big bottlers have come under attack by local communities for depletion of local water sources:

• In Worcestershire, Coca Cola's plan to increase its extration of Malvern hills spring water from 2.6 million gallons a year to 11.3 million gallons were frustrated by community opposition. In December 2004 the company withdrew plans to constructing a borehole and a 1.7 mile underground pipeline. Campaigners complained this would bleed the source dry, have a damaging impact on local ecosystems and disturb an area of outstanding natural beauty. The company says that 'further dialogue' is needed before it goes ahead with a planning application.
• In Saő Lorenço, Brazil Nestlé has been accused of drying up a historic source of mineral water, drilling without the proper authorisation, building a factory on a water park without permission and illegally de-mineralising the water. In October 2004, Nestlé was forced to close its Saő Lorenço plant. In the US the company has faced opposition in California, Florida, Maine, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.
• In Klaten, Java, Danone subsidiary PT Tirta Investama is accused of draining wells dry; major local conflict has been stoked as farmers compete for access to water. One farmer said, 'Just to get water for our fields, we have to put our lives at stake, fighting our own friends'. The farmers began a campaign against the company and have been successful in stopping two further plants from being built, but have not been able to stop the Tirta's extraction.
• Coca Colaand Pepsi Co have both faced major opposition in India, where they hold a large share of the bottled water and soft drinks markets. Communities across India are experiencing severe water shortages as a direct result of Coca Cola's extraction of groundwater sources. Whole river systems such as the River Bhavani in Tamil Nadu state, have been sold to Coca-Cola, despite severe in the region. In Plachimada, Southern India, the Coca Cola bottling plant as been shut down for over a year as a result of community action. Similarly Pepsi's plant in Pudusseri, where people in the surrounding area had faced serious water scarcity, had its license to operate removed by the local 'panchayat' (people's council).

The bottled water scam
In the UK we drink around 2 billion litres of bottled water a year, ten times more than we did in 1988. But why do we consume so much, when bottled water costs around 1,500 times as much as tapwater? As one market analyst said, 'At the end of the day, water is water. And you need innovation.'. Once primarily a fashion accessory, bottled water is now a mainstream product; advertisers dwell on the supposed health benefits of bottled water, ensuring that 'drinking bottled water is increasingly being recognised as the natural way to rehydrate' (Highland Spring). However, studies across the board have shown that there is no evidence that bottled water is healthier or purer than tap water. Regulatory standards for tap water are much tighter than those for bottled water, and a number of public health scares and academic studies have highlighted fact that bottled waters containing contaminants can get onto the marketplace. The US National Resources Defence Council produced a detailed study of 103 bottled water brands and found serious bacterial and chemical contamination problems in 22% of the brands. More recently a Dutch study found bacteria or fungi contaminants in 40% of the 68 brand waters it samled from around the world. Coca Cola was forced to withdraw its newly launched Dasani line after it emerged that the water came out of a Sidcup tap and contained excessive quantities of carcinogen bromate.
Nowadays the complex process of transforming water into water, bottling it and selling it at a hugely inflated price isn't enough to stay competetive in the bottled water marketplace; companies are now marketing so called 'aquaceuticals' or 'fortified waters', such as Danone Activ, containing extra minerals or oxygen to increase the 'health benefits'. Scientists are sceptical about the health claims of these new products. Campaigners concerned about use of new technologies to 'improve' natural products should keep an eye on this industry sector.
Who owns what?
Nestlé: Buxton, Vittel, San Pellegrino, Perrier, Pow Wow.
Danone: Evian, Volvic, Danone Activ'.
Coca Cola: Malvern water.
Thanks to Tony Clarke of the Polaris Institute and author of Inside the Bottle: an Expose of the Bottled Water Industry, for his advice and use of images. Polaris' report is available from insidethebottle@polarisinstitute.org, for 15 Canadian dollars plus postage.