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My closing statement read: "There is only one real effective and incentive method to encourage environmentally sound collecting of beverage one-way containers and it is deposit in combination with High-Tech R&D resulted Reverse Vending Machines!

Canadian Springs’ bottled water waste solution

Bottled water company Canadian Springs is to start charging a $0.25 deposit on 16oz (50cl) bottles in January 2009.

While the deposit will be standard for commercial and residential customers that buy from Canadian Springs, the company said it will also work with retailers that want to participate in the programme.

Canadian Springs is hoping its success with a deposit programme for its refillable, 4.7 gallon (18 litre) bottles will carry over to its smaller products. The company boasts a 99% return rate on its larger bottles, on which it charges a $10 deposit.

"We are trying to lead the bottled water industry to be truly responsible and push the Ontario government to take action," said Canadian Springs President Richard Stephens. “This deposit programme is a model for environmentally responsible packaging management that will result in the return of almost all Canadian Springs 50cl bottles.

"Mankind clearly has the intelligence to create the products that are damaging our environment.  Let us hope that we also have the wisdom to use those products in a more environmentally sensible manner."

Deposit programmes are just one of the schemes being used to deal with the billions of plastic bottles being produced every year. While most efforts have focused on expanding residential recycling capabilities or encouraging reduced use of plastic bottles, Canadian Springs is taking a different step along the line of extended producer responsibility. The company is trying to get the customers it works directly with to give back the bottles instead of directing them to dispose of them through a general recycling programme.

There has been considerable debate within the industry as to how best to manage the waste issue, but it's clear that the most effective option is a deposit return system. One only has to look at the overwhelming success of the deposit return system used in the beer industry to see the merits of such a programme for single-serve bottles.

"Quite frankly, I've grown very tired of hearing of global corporate 'green washing' recycling projects that have diversified beverage companies position themselves as responding to the water bottles that litter our public spaces, our parks, our beaches, even our sidewalks," Stephens said. "The bottled water providers need to create a reasonable financial incentive to encourage consumers to dispose of their bottles properly and sensibly.

Government inaction

Stephens expressed his frustration with the provincial government's general inaction on this matter. "We have been working with the Ontario government for almost two years to encourage appropriate legislation to deal with the problems being created by the single-use 15 litre water cooler bottles that have recently been introduced to the market place."

These bottles are so large that municipalities have called for their outright ban as they cannot be processed through their recycling facilities. Despite numerous requests from various municipalities and with the support of most industry players, the Ontario Government has failed to act.

The Quebec government has been much more responsive on this matter, having passed legislation in 2007 to ban these types of bottles.

This inaction is particularly puzzling and frustrating in light of the fact the previous Minister of the Environment, Laurel Broten, had issued a demand letter asking the industry to voluntarily discontinue the sale of the non returnable, non reusable 15 litre bottles or else face a strong response from government.

Despite assurances from the current Minister's office, the MOE has failed to take any initiative on this matter. "This is a case where industry can voluntarily decide to do the right thing and we hope that the MOE will choose to follow the lead of Canadian Springs on this environmental initiative," said Stephens.

Canadian Springs believes the $0.25 per bottle deposit is set at the right price point ensuring the deposit is valuable but not prohibitive. "The fully refunded deposit hasn't been an issue for our 18 litre bottle customers, as it ensures the bottles' return and hence, environmental protection. We think the 25 cent deposit will be accepted by single-serve bottle customers. This is the responsible thing for us to implement and we expect a positive response from today's environmentally conscious customers.

"This programme will allow us to almost fully ensure the return and recycling of our water bottles to keep them out of the landfill or from littering our environment. We have an agreement with Smart Plastic Recycling who will be managing our returned bottles as a valuable resource to be used in the manufacture of other plastic products."

Laurentian 1882

This past summer, the company has also launched another major environmentally oriented initiative with the introduction of its Laurentian 1882 brand of natural spring water.

The water is packaged in 75cl glass bottles which are both returnable and refillable. The water is produced in still and sparkling formats.

The name refers to Canada's oldest bottled water brand, Laurentian, which has been produced and sold in Quebec since 1882. Members of the McCall family who are fifth generation descendants of the founder are still shareholders of Aquaterra Corporation, the parent company of Canadian Springs.

The Laurentian 1882 products which are sourced and bottled in Quebec are being marketed to compete with the premium priced imported waters such as Evian, Perrier and San Pellegrino.

"It makes absolutely no environmental sense to purchase water imported from Europe that's packaged in single-use, non returnable bottles when a great-tasting, high-quality, locally produced alternative is available in a returnable, refillable bottle. The carbon footprint on imported waters is ridiculous," said Stephens.

Laurentian 1882 will soon be available to commercial and residential customers in Quebec and is available at finer restaurants.

About Canadian Springs

Canadian Springs is the nation's leading direct delivery provider of fresh natural spring water. For over 100 years, Canadian Springs and its affiliates have been refreshing homes and offices across the country.

Canadian Springs is leading the industry with state of the art facilities, superior quality standards and refreshing new products to meet business and home customers' hydration needs.

With almost 800 employees across Canada, 42 distribution centres and seven state-of-the-art bottling facilities, it's committed to providing its customers with the best in service and quality.

Canadian Springs invests in company wide actions to protect the environment, from ensuring its packaging is managed responsibly to industry leading forestry and source water protection programmes around its natural springs.

Canadian Springs is an operating division of the Aquaterra Corporation which was formed in mid 2006 when France's Groupe Danone sold its Danone Waters of Canada business to the Toronto based investment firm Birch Hill Equity Partners.