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Pepsi-Cola denies polluting water in Beijing
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Both Coca-cola and Pepsi-cola have issued statements replying to a report by the Beijing Development and Reform Commission which listed the two among the 12 top water polluters in Beijing. Aong with 15 other companies who were the top energy users in industry, the Committee will monitor each company's environmental impacts monthly via environmental inspections for an as yet undetermined time, but presumably until the environmental issues are resolved.
According to Bloomberg.com, Beijing’s government plans to reduce by 4%, the energy used to produce each unit of gross domestic product by 2010. Beijing spent $17 billion dollars to improve air quality for last year's Olympics.
“We appreciate the Beijing government’s efforts to work with industry to monitor and reduce our shared environmental impacts,” Coca-Cola’s spokesman in Asia Kenth Kaerhoeg said in a reply to questions sent by e-mail. “We will collaborate fully with them as their review moves forward.”
Both companies assert their facilities comply with wastewater treatment and emission standards. As per the Committee review, they are working to reduce water use. However, PepsiCo claims their inclusion is because their Beijing bottling plant is a “large user of water.
With Pepsi's stellar environmental record here in the United States, could this be a case of what Pepsi did in China, Pepsi thought would stay in China? The public understands the concept of public relations enough to know a good green wash when they see it. And Green wash can be good, if companies are striving as a matter of mission to become more sustainable. Because for them to do the sustainable thing should be their standard practice.
Pepsi gets kudos for their dedication to the environment here in the U.S., not to detract from their good work...here. For Pepsi to conduct their business in such a way in China, as to be impacting the environment in one of the ways the world has been lecturing China not to do, is sleazy. The only consideration, profit.
Coke and Pepsi will probably clean up their act in China, however unfortunate it is that they had to be written up and put on a list like schoolchildren in order to force them into doing the right thing.
For more information, go to: www.bloomberg.com, www.pepsicola.com, www.cocacola.com.
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