Coca-Cola asked to Shut Plant in India -- forwarded by Dr. Leo Rebello

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International Campaign to Hold Coca-Cola AccountableCoca-Cola Asked to Shut Plant in India Report Commissioned by Coca-Cola Highlights Company's Shortcomings in Indiahttp://www.indiaresource.org/news/2008/1001.htmlJanuary 21, 2008In a major blow to the Coca-Cola company in India, a report commissioned by the company itself has called for the closure of one of its bottling plants in India - in the village of Kala Dera in the state of Rajasthan. Citing the widespread water shortages being experienced by villages around Coca-Cola's bottling plant, the report recommends that either the Coca-Cola bottling find alternative sources of water - a highly impractical option - or either relocate or shut down the plant altogether. The Coca-Cola company was forced by the International Campaign to Hold Coca-Cola Accountable to agree to an assessment of its bottling operations in India.Although we did not agree with the choice of TERI - a NGO in India funded by Coca-Cola - to conduct the assessment, the report is nevertheless a scathing indictment of Coca-Cola's operations in India. The report assessed only 6 of Coca-Cola's 50 bottling plants in India.The report VALIDATES the concerns of the communities in India - that the Coca-Cola company is guilty of creating water shortages and polluting the water and land around its bottling plants.We need your help to demand that Coca-Cola respect the rights of communities over natural resources.Join us as we now use the findings of the report to insist that the Coca-Cola company cannot operate in areas of India where the groundwater resources have been classified as over-exploited, where communities are already experiencing water shortages.SOME KEY FINDINGS OF ASSESSMENT· Community Concerns on Water Scarcity and Pollution Validated· Coca-Cola Has Sited its Bottling Plants Without Due Consideration to Community Impacts· Coca-Cola Has Not Respected Rights of Farmers and Groundwater Conditions· Assessment Agrees with Key Campaign Demand - the closure of the Kala Dera bottling plant in Rajasthan. · Coca-Cola Also Warned that Water Use in Mehdiganj, Uttar Pradesh, Unsustainable, Another Key Campaign· Coca-Cola has Not Met its Own Waste Management Standards at Plants Surveyed· Coca-Cola Does Not Have Adequate Pollution Prevention Measures· Increased Pollution in Immediate Vicinity of Coca-Cola Plants· Problems with Process Water (treated water used inside for plant processes) · Coca-Cola Continues to Act in Bad Faith by Not Sharing the Environmental Impact Assessment with the Assessment TeamFactsheet on Coca-Cola in Englishhttp://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/2004/Brochure.pdfCoca-Cola Hechos en Español http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/2004/cokefactespanol.htmlCoca-Cola Fatos no Português http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/2005/cokefactportuguese.htmlCoca-Cola Fakten auf Deutschhttp://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/2006/cokefactdeutsch.htmlSUPPORT US!! Make an Online Donation http://www.indiaresource.org/donate/index.html To , please send an email with Subject UNSUBSCRIBE to info