Michigan permits Nestle increased water extraction while ending Flint bottled water distribution program

Just days before Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder announced the end of Flint's bottled water distribution program, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) granted Nestle a permit to increase its groundwater withdrawal for bottling drinking water.

According to AccuWeather, hundreds of protesters traveled from Flint to the capital, Lansing, to protest the decision to stop the distribution of bottled water and the decision to grant Nestle increased access to Michigan's drinking water.

Nestle can now begin withdrawing water at a rate up to 400 gallons per minute from the White Pine Springs well located near Evart, Michigan, according to AccuWeather. They can withdraw more than 200,000 gallons of water per day under the Michigan Safe Drinking Water Act.

Snyder said on Twitter that Flint's water is safe to drink and has tested the same or better as similar cities across the state.