Plans for a water bottling plant outside Kalispell moved one step closer to fruition Tuesday. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality issued a wastewater discharge permit for the Montana Artesian Water Company. It’s one of two permits the plant needs to open.
The DEQ permit allows Montana Artesian Water to discharge wastewater from the building’s temperature control system as well as water used to rinse bottles prior to being filled.
The DEQ added monitoring requirements that Artesian Water will need to develop and implement by November after receiving comments from more than 250 people.
According to permit applications, the Montana Artesian Water Company’s plant could bottle, ship and sell nearly 192 million gallons - that’s more than a billion 12-ounce water bottles - of treated groundwater per year.
The company still needs a water right permit from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. The DNRC has scheduled a hearing for September 19 at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell.