AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine House of Representatives soundly defeated a proposal Tuesday to limit the length of contracts that Poland Spring and other bottled water companies use to buy water from local communities.
The bill from Rep. Maggie O’Neil, D-Saco, would cap those large-scale water extraction and transportation contracts between the bottled water industry and local utilities at 10 years and require a public meeting before any agreement. It was amended after initially limiting contracts to three years and requiring towns to approve the deals.
But while O’Neil argued her measure was meant to add guardrails to the contracts that Poland Spring has with Fryeburg, for example to buy water for up to 45 years, it faced opposition from colleagues on both sides of the aisle and strong lobbying from Poland Spring.
The House defeated the bill Tuesday in a 92-42 vote, after the Legislature’s energy committee had also given it an unfavorable report last November. O’Neil’s bill is sponsored by Sen. Rick Bennett, R-Oxford, and several Democrats.
“A long-term contract is a risky deal for any seller because markets and prices shift,” O’Neil said.
Poland Spring, the bottled water giant named after the original natural source its water was drawn from in the Androscoggin County town of Poland, and its Wall Street-backed parent BlueTriton Brands — formerly known as Nestle Waters North America — lobbied hard against the measure by arguing the contract limits would not give them enough time to recoup investments needed for the large-scale extraction projects.
Although O’Neil mentioned Poland Spring’s contracts with Fryeburg and Lincoln have faced concerns from residents and court challenges over the years, superintendents from Lincoln and Rumford water districts argued last year the long-term sale agreements can actually lead to lower costs for ratepayers.
Despite Tuesday’s vote, the bill is not yet dead and now goes to the Senate.
