Metro News Halifax is reporting this morning that, “City Hall is turning on its taps and putting a cap on bottled water thanks to a move made yesterday by Halifax Regional Municipality’s elected officials. Fifteen city councillors voted for banning ‘purchase and distribution of bottled water’ in the Grand Parade building, while only five were opposed to the motion brought forward by Coun. Jennifer Watts, who represents the Connaught-Quinpool district.”
The CBC report adds that, “A report to council stated that bottled water could be banned at Halifax City Hall because the tap water in the historic building has been tested and meets Canadian drinking water guidelines. But staff recommended that regional council wait for further testing before implementing the idea at the municipality’s 250 other facilities.”
National water campaigner Meera Karunananthan and Atlantic organizer Angela Giles met with Councillor Jennifer Watts in Halifax during the ‘Paint the Town Blue! Atlantic speaking tour on water issues’ on April 29.
In a media release, Angela says, “This indicates that HRM Council as a whole is starting to understand that everyone should have access to the wonderful clean drinking water that Halifax Water provides, and should not have to pay for a drink of water. This initial step brings us closer to all the other communities that have committed to phasing out bottled water in support of the tap.”
She also notes, “The Council of Canadians and a great coalition of groups worked to make this happen, and will continue to work to make it broader in scope.”
Today’s newspaper report is at http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/local/article/311894–city-hall-gives-the-boot-to-the-bottle#commentbox. The CBC report is at http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2009/09/16/ns-bottle-ban.html.
