If Nestlé Waters Canada decides not to proceed with a planned secondary well in the Victoria Road area, the company will continue searching in Puslinch Township until a suitable replacement is discovered.
“I would say that’s a fair statement,” Nestlé’s natural resource manager Wayne Caston said, responding to the question posed by Puslinch councillor Susan Fielding on March 5.
But obviously the Victoria Road location has not been ruled out. Last month Nestlé received a permit from the Ministry of the Environment for a “step pump test” at the site, which will be conducted before April 30.
Based on the results from that test, Nestlé may proceed with a full pump test, likely in “late spring or early summer,” Caston said. In any event, it will likely be at least a year before any large-scale extraction takes place.
“I would tend to suggest, if everything falls in line … that would not be dealt with by the [MOE] before 2009 at all,” Caston said. He added that Nestlé remains committed to limiting extraction to the level of its current permit – a maximum of 3.6 million litres per day – even if the secondary well is approved.
The current permit to take water originally expired last June but has been extended several times, with the latest extension lasting until April 18.
Councillor Matthew Bulmer said a recent media statement from Nestlé puts too much blame on the MOE for the delays.
“You’re putting a lot on the MOE,” Bulmer said, adding it should be noted that Nestlé has hired hydrogeologists from the U.S. to defend its position.
Bulmer told Caston he does not think Nestlé is doing itself any favours by “putting up such a fuss.”
It would be better if the company acknowledged the impacts of its water extraction and took the necessary steps to address those impacts, he said.
