Image by kartooner via Flickr
If you live in North America, the Caribbean or certain European countries you may have seen Fiji Water. Did you know native Fijians go without clean water?
I’ve been incredulous about the growth in popularity whole bottled water thing. I can see benefits, especially when it comes to emergency preparedness. But Fiji Water seems to take the whole thing beyond incredulity.
Short Background: They drill deep into the Artesian aquifer in the remote south Pacific island nation of Fiji. They import plastic bottles from China, bottle the water and sell it in the US and other countries with people who have more money than brains. The company has been criticized by others about the whole carbon foot print involved in production. The company has taken steps to go green.
My beef has to do with the water. In looking for examples of good clean water programs, I came accross the Humanitarian Services division of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Over the last 5 years, they’ve done clean water projects in 34 countries. More about that later.
Here’s where the two stories converge. One of those projects is in Fiji. The village
Jo Vitinavulagi fills the first bucket from the new water tanks.
I’m happy they have clean water now but the story points out problems around the world. What did the military dictator of Fiji do about the water problem? What about the American company taking clean water from another part of the island chain?
Here’s an example of clean water being easily available and technologically possible. But those with political and economic power chose to do nothing. The story is repeated over and over. I’ll let you know when I see more.
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Tags: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, clean, Fiji, Fiji Water, Humanitarian Services
September 25th, 2008 at 12:01 am
I am from Canary Islands and that Fiji is selling its water when their own people have trouble to find it, seems weird, to put it mildly.
They -whoever is responsible- are literally selling their health away.
September 25th, 2008 at 4:07 am
” Selling their health away ,”
That what’s happening for the last millennia. What I don’t understand that someone isn’t satisfied with happy employees, a little less income but way more respect, a clean soul,(what does one truly need?), I think it’s an easy way to generate power. I think it’s disgusting.
September 25th, 2008 at 6:14 am
What’s really ironic is that the people who buy this stuff, for the most part, do have clean water, and have been bamboozled into wasting money and incredible amounts of plastic by the bottled water industry….
September 25th, 2008 at 6:41 am
Whose Water?If you live in North America, the Caribbean or certain European countries you may have seen Fiji Water. Did you know native Fijians go without clean water?
September 25th, 2008 at 7:15 am
For years if not centuries, vanity and greed was the paramount power behind commercial and indusrial development…oh i was to forget the war industries…an ugly flower that humanity carries.
But we have now a new instrument to higher world consciousness, it’s not too late, the concept of “carbon trace” is making its way…so it will more and more difficult for illminded commercial projects to hide unconscious ventures and disrespectful environmental ideas.
Thank’s to the ones that developped this “not yet famous enough” concept…that will raise the world consciousness in these days of global village.
September 25th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
This is a very elitist problem that too many Americans have fallen prey to… Education is the key in ending this ridiculous indulgence.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
@Kathryn Skaggs -
I’ll agree with you there. People don’t know what to believe with so much information and so many spinners to deal with. Continual education about goings on is the only way.
September 27th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Wow, thats really sad that they can’t even have clean water themselves, but they can ship it here and we pay like three dollars for it.
Chrissy<33
September 27th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
@Chrissy -
Shows that somebody is not thinking.
September 29th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Probably doesn’t really change anything, but up here at UW - Milwaukee, the geosciences department did a study on various bottled waters, and from their results, apparently FIJI bottled water wouldn’t qualify for clean drinking water in the US. It apparently is okay because it’s a bottled water product. The results I saw showed toxins, carcinogens and heavy metals.
September 29th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
@Trask -
I’d really like to see those results. That would make the idea of bringing water from Fiji even more ludicrous.
September 30th, 2008 at 7:36 am
I did a project for a World Issues class in Highschool a few years ago that tested several different water sources around my area. The test was done by a conservation officer for Lakes and Parks in Ontario and it included tap water, Fiji, Dasani, tim hortons water, and lake water (Lake Huron). It turns out that the Fiji water wasn’t even chemically healthy enough for the conservation officer to allow it to be poured back into the lake!! I just wish a proper test (Fiji won’t publish the results of most tests) would be done by people with enough power to widely distribute the results.
September 30th, 2008 at 9:17 am
@Pat -
I’m looking for published results on that. It’s hard to get traction with a story without solid facts. But I must say that an officer who says Fiji water would pollute the lake is an attention getter.
Thanks for the info.
October 3rd, 2008 at 6:20 pm
I’m a New Yorker, and we probably place ourselves up there among the highest consumers of bottled water. Which is kind of ironic, considering that studies show that our city water is one of the cleaner and better tasting in the country. And I agree. There have been many studies that show that bottled water isn’t any better than most drinkable tap water and I did read about Dasani being among the questionable brands. I can tell you that Volvic, imported from France, while it is quite good, is in fact tap water in that region. I vacationed there as a child. There are few water brands that are better that drinkable tap water, and nothing that a regular water filter can’t fix. Evian water for example has a high content of minerals.
I do wonder though, do the profits of Fiji water somehow benefit Fijians? Does it maybe provide jobs and revenues to that small island?
These days I am weary of anything coming out of China, the toys, the pets food and now the baby formula… it all gives bottled water a bad taste… that’s even without worrying about our carbon footprint, which I try my best to minimize.
Should we boycott Fiji water? I personally don’t buy it but I would be happy to spread the word… if you can guarantee me that in the unlikely chance that I would buy it, I wouldn’t be taking away from the revenue of someone who might truly need it… and it sounds like Fijians could use the revenue…
October 3rd, 2008 at 8:05 pm
@Sandrine -
I don’t really see a reason to boycott Fiji water. The company is a big part of the countru’s exports. They do employ some 300 Fijians. That’s almost all their employees there. In fact the company has an out reach to improve schools and water supplies in the area.
The real problem in Fiji is the power structure. Fiji is made up of several islands. Remote villages have water problems. Not because the water is not available. Not because technology does not exist to clean it. Water is often polluted by cattle upstream. Cattle is another profitable business. Those businesses seem to be irresponsible and not being held accountable.
Clean water seems to be for those with some kind of power. This is just a very clear example of it. My contention is that it is always an indication of abuse of legitimate political power when people don’t have clean water.
October 5th, 2008 at 6:39 am
@Willis Whitlock - oh, ok then why write this article? It seems your efforts are a bit misguided and perhaps better put to a higher good.
October 6th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
@D -
The higher good is clean water for everybody. Laughing at silly North Americans buying water from far away is fun and helps draw attention. Getting clean water is still the goal.
October 14th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
I’m hardly unbiased on the subject, but dang.. you got a good discussion going here!
There are so many good ideas on the subject, and not just one way to get to clean drinking water for all.
We’ve been discussing this on Twitter and I’m amazed at the number of great ideas that aren’t fully implemented.
We can’t rely on governments or established institutions to to this for us. We all have to use as many avenues as we can to implement these ideas.
October 15th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Extremely important information. I will be sharing with everyone I know. Thank you!
October 15th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
@Fun in Yonkers -
Be sure to go to the site and get the full list. You can download a PDF brochure thing there too. In case you want to share with your paper based friends.
October 15th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
@Warren Whitlock -
Actually, your discussion got me thinking about the topic. The more I read, the more convince I was that it needed more exposure.
November 15th, 2008 at 10:34 am
I sit here in my house with running water, using my computer and my readily available electricity to blog about the lack of water in FIJI. I understand the problem, but I’m willing to bet everyone who commented here have nothing to do with a solution.
November 15th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
@Emiliano Jordan -
That’s the point of blogging about topics. To make people more aware and help become part of the solution.