Passamaquoddys plan water-bottling plant
The Passamaquoddy tribe hopes to allay unemployment on its land by building a 123,000-square-foot water-bottling plant to sell water to customers outside tribal lands.
The Associated Press reported tribal officials plan to close on a deal with an investor for the $32 million bottling plant early next year, a plan they said has broad support among the 1,300 tribe members.
Unemployment is nearly at 60% among tribal residents, according to figures from the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs, and tribal leaders expect the new bottling plant could provide around 70 well-paying jobs.
The tribe said it aims to own 61% of the company and would use New Markets Tax Credits for investors in rural areas and loan guarantee programs through the Bureau of Indian Affairs to help cover the construction costs.
Bill Turner, a hydrologist and tribal consultant, told the AP that rainwater and melting snow alone could provide around 700 million gallons of water from multiple wells and that there is ultimately enough to produce 200 million cases of water a year.
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