Page 16 - Flathead Beacon // 3.23.16

NEWS
IN DEPTH
Lew Weaver points to the approximate location of his well while discussing the Montana Artesian Water Co., a water bottling facility near Creston.
GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
Creston Farmer Explains Water Bottling Plans Lew Weaver says concerns over proposed facility are based on misinformation
ABY TRISTAN SCOTT OF THE BEACON
MID PUBLIC OUTCRY THAT A
Creston farmer downplayed his
plans to build a water bottling plant near the Flathead River, the man behind the business venture says he’s open about the project – as transparent as the artesian spring water he intends to pump, bottle and sell.
“This isn’t something that just hap- pened overnight. I’ve been completely open about this, and I’m working through all of the proper regulatory channels,” said Lew Weaver, owner of Montana Artesian Water Co., the company laying the plans for the bottling facility.
Recent news of the proposal opened a oodgate of concern from conserva- tion groups and nearby residents who worry that the water bottling plant would deplete the amount of available water in their own wells. They’ve expressed con- cern about an uptick in truck tra c on a county road and the potential for dis- charge water from the plant to despoil nearby wetlands.
But Weaver said he’s not skirting the rules, and that his ties to Mon- tana run as deep as the aquifer he’d be pumping. If he thought the plant would
have environmental consequences, he wouldn’t pursue it.
“I have had ties to this valley since the 1960s, and I don’t want to see its natu- ral resources ruined,” Weaver told the Beacon recently at the Kalispell o ce of Applied Water Consulting, the company in charge of the permitting process for the proposed facility.
In January, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation issued a preliminary water rights permit after determining that the plant would cause “no adverse impacts” to other water rights owners in the area. DNRC o cials extended the period for water right holders to object to the plant after a number of residents complained.
The new period to le objections begins Wednesday, March 23, when a public notice is published, and will run through Thursday, April 7.
The most common refrain from res- idents objecting to the bottling plant relates to the sheer volume of water Mon- tana Artesian Water Co. would be pump- ing, bottling and discharging.
At maximum build-out, the permit would allow the company to pump 710 acre-feet of water per year from the underground aquifer. That means it
could withdraw up to 231.5 million gal- lons annually, of which it would bottle, ship and sell 191.6 million gallons – the equivalent of 1.2 billion 20-ounce water bottles – while the rest would be reserved for rinsing bottles and equipment, as well as for on-site tap water.
That entails drawing 450 gallons per minute from the well.
Reaching maximum build-out depends on demand and market avail- ability, however, and in the beginning Weaver said Montana Artesian Water Co. would operate 60 hours a week, with- drawing water at a rate of about 25 gal- lons per minute, or 4.68 million gallons per year.
Hydrogeologist Roger Noble, of Applied Water Consulting, said his mod- eling of the aquifer shows that it would naturally recharge, and neighboring wells would not be a ected.
“This is a highly proli c aquifer,” Noble said.
Other concerns have centered on the discharge water, some of which would include rinse water from the plastic bot- tles that Weaver plans to manufacture on-site.
In addition to the DNRC permit, Montana Artesian Water Company has applied with the Department of Envi- ronmental Quality for permitting under the Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimi- nation System.
The company has requested a permit at two outfall points, both of which would discharge e uent into “an unnamed trib- utary of the Flathead River,” about 1,300 feet away from the river.
One outfall would contain rinse water from plastic water bottles and would average a discharge of 2,640 gallons per day.
“THIS ISN’T SOMETHING THAT JUST HAPPENED OVERNIGHT. I’VE BEEN COMPLETELY OPEN ABOUT THIS, AND I’M WORKING THROUGH ALL OF THE PROPER REGULATORY CHANNELS.”
- LEW WEAVER
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MARCH 23, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM