The Next Green Thing: "Water Neutrality"

The Next Green Thing: "Water Neutrality"

When Coca-Cola showed off its sustainability chops this summer at the Beijing Olympic Games, one of its pledges grabbed my attention: recognizing growing concerns about water around the globe (and in Beijing) and its own heavy water footprint, the company had the remarkable ambition

to return to communities and to nature an amount of water equivalent to what we use in all of our beverages and their production. This means reducing the amount of water used to produce our beverages, recycling water used for manufacturing processes so it can be returned safely to the environment, and replenishing water in communities and nature through locally relevant projects.

The pledge wasn't just a bid to protect one of Coke's biggest ingredients, but for mouths and minds in valuable and increasingly drought-plagued markets like China and India. Activists in Kala Dera, where Coke has been accused of depleting groundwater, may be skeptical, Time was impressed. Says Fortune, "No company is doing more than Coke to provide clean water to the world's poor (and not-so-poor) people."

But the term Coca-Cola is using for its goals -- "water neutrality" -- which was coined at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, and which Coke will be unveiling again in the next few days is, well, quite slippery. Last year, Coca-Cola admitted as much.

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Comments

[JuniorNorman]

J Scott is right over-population is the problem.
I take a small glass juice bottle take tap water and filter it. Take some green tea add lemon juice and maple syrup (5 TIMES SWEETER THAN CORNSYRUP!). I pass them out free at work....

[JScott]

Hmmm NO ONE wants to talk about the big elephant in the room-limiting human population growth, you can do all the stuff they want but if you don't limit the numbers of humans, it won't help one bit.
Do we just assume 500 million, what if we say no we won't get human population that large, it's NOT good for the planet and not good for water resources. Have to get away from this corporate mentality that more is inevitable and better-IT'S NOT!!!

[Archie1955]

North America has sufficient natural fresh water to supply the needs of 500 million people and their industry with resources to spare. The problem is the water isn't in the places that need it most. It also isn't in the countries that need it most and to top it off it may be depleting in exactly those areas that require it most due to climate change. It is too late if governments don't plan ahead of actual disaster. Now is the time to be deciding how to move water from plentiful areas to where it is needed most. Waiting until people are literally dying of thirst is the height of gross negiligence. The time is now so start negotiating with the Canadian Government immediately. Canada sits on 10 to 20 % of the world's fresh water and only has 0.05 % of the world's population equating to about 7% of North America's population. You won't be able to just waltz in and take it but I'm sure if you play fair you'll get what you want for a satisfactory price. However if you start playing the old US ploy of having to beat up the other side you won't get a single glass. Therefore take heed and play by the rules. Try it you might actually like it!

[MatoSka]

Continued from prior post)

We want:

* to make affordable drinking water available to everyone in the bio-region as a priority, recognizing that access to such water is a basic human right and include the impacts on impoverished neighborhoods, rural communities and family farmers of water policy decisions; (Social Justice)

* and to integrate local policies regarding water conservation, re-use, land use and urban planning within the parameters of the existing regional renewable supplies of water, and maintain a working relation between urban economic development with local rural agriculture. (Community-based Economics and Economic Justice)

[MatoSka]

We want:
* to work together with our neighbors in making decisions that recognize the stake that future generations have in those decisions; (Future Focus)

* to make plans that care for our water resources in ways that recognize our dependence on a finite supply of fresh water respect the integrity of ecosystems and the natural patterns of water and to recognize the impact of decisions on surface, ground and oceanic waters; (Ecological Wisdom)

* to recognize that we share our world with other peoples who are impacted by the policies of the US in the World Bank and support the rights of indigenous peoples and other nations to assure their ability to survive and access clean, affordable water resources and maintain their traditional cultures; (Personal and Global Responsibility)

* to assure accountability on the part of those making decisions on water use by having them be elected officials representing the community of varied users, water specialists, the environment and the water companies directly accountable to local people; (Grassroots Democracy)

*to acknowledge the diversity of plant and animal life dependent on long-enduring ecosystems and to recognize the planetary importance of water systems on all life; (Respect for Diversity)

* to prevent the usurpation of public rights by privatization and multi-national corporations and maintain local public control of water resource planning and management (Decentralization)

[MatoSka]

The EcoAction Committee considers the importance of the water resource a critical priority in this election year and every year after. The Green Party advocates for the future well-being of generations to come by actively working to implement the necessary legislation, electing the committed candidates and establishing the required administrative and political measures in every state. We actively work in accordance with our Key Values to make the changes needed to empower the people to make the decisions regarding the water resource that impact on their daily lives.


The National Committee of the Green Party of the United States and its affiliated state parties will work to educate candidates, engage the public in supporting positive legislation at all levels of government and unite with public officials in implementing the changes needed to realize these goals. The impacts of climate change necessarily need to be included in water policies. The reforms needed take political changes and reforms in our water management systems. It will take updating of water laws to address changing populations and local priorities. It will take a political party and its candidates to educate the public of the crisis that has already been demonstrated from Maine to Florida to the South West and California. There is no time, and no water, to waste.

[melakfilms]

Yes, and I believe all those commercials about how much Exxon Mobil is doing for the environment.

[OldKnute]

Oh Fudgecycle.

Look! All Coca Cola needs to do is make their water from the air.

They can do this with their secondary yield from the needs of heating and cooling. Hot water for sterilization and cleaning required of their bottling plants, refrigeration needed to ship their product COLD. It will also lower their overall Product Energy FOOTPRINT. Post-manufacture,,,, Re-Chilling,,,, of product.

Ummm????

All Refrigeration has a High,, "Pressure",,, Side (Hot),,, and a Low,, "Pressure",,, Side. The Low Pressure side is always producing water through Condensation. Right out of the air.

By sending their deliveries out COLD,,, from the factory,, and using,, Solar Power as the electrical supply,, to run their refrigeration compressors,, the bi-product is WATER.

FOR FREE,, just using the SUN for power.

In this way, Coke can reduce their total Product Energy Footprint,, offer their workers a pleasant and air-conditioned work environment,, use the waste heat for sterilization, and send out a Pre-Chilled product. They could even start marketing Solar Produced,,, ICE,,,, for sale in neighboring communities.

Refrigerant Compressors do NOT care in the least, where their electrical power comes from.

I am quite sure Coke would like to have their power bill be reduced ZERO,,, too!

Just a thought.

If home in the United States would convert to Solar Sourced Refrigeration, we could make the Mississippi run backwards,, in effect.

All the best

Knute