Article

by Hannah Moore

May 12, 2015—Crystal Geyser will soon join Northern California’s Siskiyou County in relying on the Sacramento River for water. The private water company recently announced plans to open a Crystal Geyser Water Co. plant at the foot of Mount Shasta, according to ABC News.

Crystal Geyser plans to eventually take 365,000 gallons of Siskiyou County groundwater per day. The company will start with one bottling line that will use about 115,000 gallons per day, reports the SF Gate.

The water currently feeds Siskiyou County rivers and streams as well as the headwaters of the Sacramento River. The new plant will be one of 108 bottling operations in California. Operation use is set to begin this fall.

Because there are no limits on groundwater pumping in California, companies can get away with pumping for as much of it as they want—for now, that is. Legislation that will start regulation for endangered aquifers will go into effect in 2020. Under the law, bottling water is currently a legal way in which to use water.

Bottled water companies that pump groundwater on their own property are exempt from the mandatory water cutbacks that apply to cities and towns, as ordered by Gov. Jerry Brown earlier this spring.

The new tapping for Crystal Geyser is met with anger from environmentalists, American Indian tribes and Mount Shasta city residents. The groups say they can’t believe that a company is allowed bottle the water while residents are ordered to conserve it. They fear that this plant operation could completely drain the aquifer.

Judy Yee, Crystal Geyser executive vice president, said company officials are keeping in touch with local residents to make sure their pumping for Crystal Geyser bottles isn’t detrimental to the environment.

The 145,000-square-foot facility was left by Coca Cola in 2010 when the company quit selling spring water. The site originally had a cedar lumber mill and considerable industrial use.