“Tabled” Nestle Contract Topic of Discussion Among Clinton Selectmen… Again
Though everybody said it was a dead issue, the idea of Clinton selling Wekepeke water to Nestle was raised again at the Clinton Selectmen meeting.
Like a zombie rising from the grave to eat the brains of the living, this is a bad idea that simply won’t go away:
From the Worcester Telegram & Gazette News:
The loss of $250,000 in state money to fix deteriorating earthen dams at the Clinton-owned Wekepeke Reservoir in Sterling last night prompted a discussion among selectmen of revisiting selling Wekepeke water to Nestlé Waters North America for bottling.A contract between the town and Nestlé allowing the bottling company access to the 564-acre parcel for testing will expire in March.
The idea was initially an unpopular among Sterling residents, where the Wekepeke reservoir is located, and there are some significant legal questions about Clinton’s right to sell the water.
Some even felt the Clinton Selectmen misrepresented the extent of the negotiations with Nestle, and given all the questions and opposition, the whole project was apparently put to rest.
Still, it appears several of the selectmen don’t want to re-open the negotiation, which will hopefully (and finally) put this issue to bed:
After much opposition in Sterling and some legal questions, the town earlier this year turned down a deal with Nestlé that would have included money to repair the four dams, two of which were considered in danger of collapsing. The Wekepeke, with five reservoirs, was once Clinton’s public water supply, but has not been used since the 1960s.Some Sterling residents have contended all along that Nestlé has not given up on buying Wekepeke water.
Selectman Anthony M. Fiorentino suggested that with the state money for dam repairs cut, the town might look again at the Nestlé proposal.
But Selectmen Mary Rose Dickhaut, Kathleen A. Sheridan, and James J. LeBlanc were against it.
“I think there are too many consequences,” Ms. Dickhaut said. “I thought we had put this to rest.”
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