Maine needs Poland Spring

In response to Linda Dumey from Wells who claimed that Maine gets “next to nothing” from Poland Spring’s presence (letter, April 19), I strongly disagree.

In the real world, Poland Spring helps hundreds of Mainers support their families with good jobs, including jobs at the company where I work.

Since 1948, Hartt Transportation has been Maine family owned and operated. Today we employ over 500 full-time employees. One hundred and fifty of them are on the Poland Spring account, which represents $10 million a year in payroll. These are good jobs. If you do the math, the average salary of our workers is about $67,000 per year, including full benefits.

These jobs wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for Poland Spring. If extremists are successful, 150 of my co-workers will be out of work, and maybe I will too.

Hartt has made over $32 million in capital investments just to service the Poland Spring account. That includes buying trucks, trailers and the parts to maintain them, all of which we purchased from other Maine companies and which help support Maine jobs. From the dealerships to fuel stations to tire suppliers, there are hundreds of Mainers who have benefited from our partnership with Poland Spring. Many of them are right here in Lewiston-Auburn.

Maine needs more companies like Poland Spring. We must reject anti-business crusaders who gleefully threaten a trusted Maine company and willfully jeopardize hundreds of good paying jobs. Perhaps they have that luxury. Real Maine families do not

Ricky Hughes, terminal manager

Hartt Transportation Systems, Bangor and Auburn

In order to make comments, you must verify your account.

In order to comment on SunJournal.com, you must use your real name and include the town in which you live in your profile. A member of our staff will call you to verify this information. To join in, fill out your user profile completely and check the box "please verify my status." We'll get back to you within one business day to verify your account.

Login or create an account here.

Our policy prohibits comments that are:

  • Defamatory, abusive, obscene, racist, or otherwise hateful
  • Excessively foul and/or vulgar
  • Inappropriately sexual
  • Baseless personal attacks or otherwise threatening
  • Contain illegal material, or material that infringes on the rights of others
  • Commercial postings attempting to sell a product/item
If you violate this policy, your comment will be removed and your account may be banned.

Advertisement

Comments

Grady's picture

WATER taken out by Nestle IS displaced

Water taken out of our water system by Nestle IS displaced from our aquifer and our water system.  It is not coming back.  Further, of course evaporation is not "losing water," it is part of the rain cycle. 

Grady's picture

It's DISPLACING not borrowing

When water is taken out of the local water cycle it is displaced -- that means it is gone forever.  Think again, "thinkingman."

thinkingman's picture

Water is never displaced, its

Water is never displaced, its merely removed and placed elsewhere, think what happens when you drink water and follow the results all the way through the systemic means from end to end, including waste treatment...think evaporation, which you might argue means losing water, but i would counter its only lost until it rains again...simple quote "matter can neither be created or destroyed"...

tron's picture

Go fly a kite

and learn  proper English.  I swear Husson graduates the most ignorant people, can't even construct proper sentences.

Your scenario is full of assumptions which may or may not be true.  The aquifers MAY replenish themselves, but there is no guarantee.  Meanwhile we're playing Russian Roulette with Poland Springs and they are the only winners.

thinkingman's picture

Clearly you have no clue on

Clearly you have no clue on how aquafers in Maine work and why they are so different from aquafers in the south and west which are drying faster than they can be replenished....here's a clue from a local geologist and state DEP guy...fractured bedrock....yeah our water does not travel in underground rivers but instead "bleeds" through the bedrock underneath us, resupplying what is taken, thus the chances of a drought are much smaller. But hey instead of using knowledge, just keep hitting singles with comments about my grammer, spelling and that I am such a right wing wacko....Oh and speaking of sentence structure "I swear Husson graduates the most ignorant people, can't even construct proper sentences." Somehow thats not quite a proper sentence, but allow me to teach you, maybe by placing a "who" in front of "can't"....yeah thats what I thought....such a fool, please take your foot out of your mouth..your posts are as worthless as the allegations of harassment....and still no ne from the police department has contacted me..I wonder why ?

tron's picture

the reason you're not being contacted

is because I haven't reported it, only to the SJ, which took proper steps to admonish the guilty party.  YOU are responsible, since your constant attacks invite the weak mind to do your dirty work, like Bill O'Reilly incited someone to murder the abortion doctor.  You right wing wackos run with a dangerous crowd, we never know what to expect, so normal people must be cautious.  You cannot be trusted!

 

The sentence was constructed properly, you failed to see the comma which makes the sentence correct.  It's just Husson didn't teach you proper grammar, so you're really ignorant.

thinkingman's picture

The sentence is incorrect its

The sentence is incorrect its not complete....but hey how would you be sure given your lack of proper education. Your jealousy over my college education is amazing...and you accuse me of stalking? Priceless! As to the lSJ, not sure if I need to explain whjo the proper parties are when you make a complaint or allegation of harassment or threats, most sane people would call the police, not the newspaper...shows how little proof you had and how false your accusations were...and I'm stillposting here which is further proof that i was not a guilty party....now go take your meds like a good little boy and go talk to your non-existent extra brothers and sisters.  Yeah, did I mention my wife has the family  tree that her mom was writing in both sides of the family with help from people in the family, and no mention of the other siblings that you claimed a while back...I'll file that with bates as a republican bastian, same with education unions and oh yeah my new favorite Barack Obama as the supporter of gay marriage rights....gosh so many wrongs...

tron's picture

I've never met anyone with such low

self esteem that they continue to attack people just to elevate themselves.  It's not working.

I'm not jealous of your education, anyone can go to Husson, and it taught you a life skill.  Bravo.  It didn't teach you proper grammar, or "typing skills" as you call it.

I've seen the family tree you're talking about.  It is filled with inaccuracies, but since I saw after it was submitted, I decided not to correct it. Also since you have eradicated any French influence in your family, what would be the use.

thinkingman's picture

So you're harrassed but

So you're harrassed but complain to a newspaper not the police, your family tree has inaccuracies that you found but you don't feel a need to offer corrections to make sure the historical records of your family are preserved for prosperity, and even though you have never been to my home, wouldn't know my kids if you saw them and have no clue about the importnce of knowing all their roots and family issues you comment on that? Their memere and pepere are HUGE influences in their life even if they left us much too soon, and all 3 of my children can speak french and are well versed in franco-american culture as am I through being part of the family.

thinkingman's picture

technically, Poland Springs

technically, Poland Springs is only borrowing the water...if you wish to think of it in true physical terms, the water at some point is placed back into the environment and the again available for re-use....like it or not thats what is happening...you drink it, you go pee, you flush and it goes to waste treatment if your lucky enough to have that in your town, after processing the water is released back into the river where it either washes to sea or becomes onc eagian part of that aquafer you draw water from. But they must be evil because tron says so, if he had his way everyone would be on welfare as there would be no companies hiring people, course then where ans who would he collect taxes from? Careful, thats a golden goose you're choking to death...

David A Gagnon's picture
verified

I have a question for all you

I have a question for all you small minded liberals. Do lobsterman pay a tax for the resource they remove from our state coastal waters? How about lumber companies, do they pay one for every tree they remove? Oh by the way Grady, their neighbors have never complained about low water tables. The only people complaing are people like yourself who envy companies like Poland Spring. I worked for Poland Spring for 5 years and know that their neighbors over in Poland and their other plants have never complained when a dry summer occours. Most of them are tapped into the same aquafers. Maine home owners with drilled wells don't pay a resource tax or extraction tax.  Maine people do not own the aquafer under Poland Spring. Poland Spring owns the land above those aquafers and they pay the taxes for that land. Why is it you people always want to attack companies that do well in this state.

Grady's picture

Nestle's billions in profit from our water

And how many billions per year does NESTLE, a FOREIGN Swiss multi-national corp. realize in profit from extracting and trucking away Maine's water?  Poland Spring no longer exists - it's just a brand name for Nestle.  Bottled water is more profitable than oil.  Wake up Mainers, this is our water, we can't live without it.  When we have a couple of dry years in the future, Nestle still gets 700 million gallons per year, right off the top.  What about the rights of private well owners? 

David A Gagnon's picture
verified

Well Lil, small minds like

Well Lil, small minds like yours are what's causing a lot of business to leave this state. Its seems that in your small mind, that businesses like Poland Spring can never pay enough. Tell me, what would you and tron say if you were at the receiving end of this  little fiasco. What would you feel like if joe liberal public were constantly after you for more money in the way of taxation. I know what I would do. I would tell you to fly a kite and move my company to where I'm wanted and appreciated for what I do for the community and to hell with you. You should own your own business and get the real feel of what its like.

Lil's picture
verified

See ya.

The state should just give away assets? That sounds rather socialistic/communist to me.

thinkingman's picture

Only if it was a state asset

Only if it was a state asset in the first place - the water in the ground is owned by whomever owns the land....kind of like harvesting trees in our forests, lobsters in our oceans, fih in our lakes...shall I go on. Yes, please now tell me all those things require licenses so they are getting money and I'll be happy to remind you of all the DEP & EPA licensing and taxes paid by Poland Springs.

tron's picture

all bodies of water are owned by the state

and by your scenario the oil in Alaska is owned by landowners but the state STILL collects royalties, so I guess your argument is full of crap, just like you!

thinkingman's picture

Geez, are you that dumb? The

Geez, are you that dumb? The oil companies pay to drill on state owned land and the state collects royalties to allow them to do so. In Maine Poland Springs looked to buy the rights to the land and pump water from what would be their owned or leased land. But back to my original post....water refills an aquafer, unlike oil which is a limited supply and once pulled from the ground never returns, except for the small amount that might occur over the next 100 years from continued decay of materials there. Lastly, why would a guy like you continue to post arguing with me when you're so concerned for your life and think I'm somehow stalking you and threatening you....thats the real crap here, in everything you say and do....LPD can't wait for your call, would you like me to have an officer assigned to investigate for you? They need a good laugh!

Lil's picture
verified

water

How much do they pay for the water?

David A Gagnon's picture
verified

So you don't think that

So you don't think that Poland Spring pays for what it takes do you tron. Well I going to add a little bit more information here. Not only does Poland Spring pay Hart Transportation millions in transportion fees, Poland Spring itself owns a fleet of trucks of its own that they purchase parts and tires for from local L/A companies. They also employ hundreds of employees to run the plants and drive those trucks. But you like tron, anytime you wish, you could step in a pay the taxes the Poland Spring pays. They pay in the thousands  for what you call excise tax for each one opf those trucks. They pay sales tax for all the parts and fuel that those trucks use. They also pay property taxes, cause they own the land that sits on top of the aquafers they draw the water from. They are also regulated in the number of gallons the state allows them to draw form those same aquafers. So tron, do you still think they pay nothing for something they own.

tron's picture

Nice to see you think your post

was so important that you posted it twice.  Well everything you said can also be said of all the oil companies in Alaska, BUT they also pay royalties to the state for every gallon they remove, so much so that Alaska doesn't have to tax its citizens.  Poland Springs uses Maine's natural resources and pays NOTHING!!

David A Gagnon's picture
verified

So you don't think that

So you don't think that Poland Spring pays for what it takes do you tron. Well I going to add a little bit more information here. Not only does Poland Spring pay Hart Transportation millions in transportion fees, Poland Spring itself owns a fleet of trucks of its own that they purchase parts and tires for from local L/A companies. They also employ hundreds of employees to run the plants and drive those trucks. But you like tron, anytime you wish, you could step in a pay the taxes the Poland Spring pays. They pay in the thousands  for what you call excise tax for each one opf those trucks. They pay sales tax for all the parts and fuel that those trucks use. They also pay propery taxes, cause they own the land that sits on top of the aquafers they draw the water from. They are also regulated in the number of gallons the state allows them to draw form those same aquafers. So tron, do you still think they pay nothing for something they own.

tron's picture

Poland Springs needs to start

paying the state of Maine for the natural resource it is taking without paying for it.  It is a sham that they make money from Maine resource without payment.  These right wing wackos should begin to pay!!

Denny1973's picture

Tron is there anything you

Tron is there anything you dont take a radical socialistic view on? If you dont like living in USA, go try Cuba or Venezuela.

Lil's picture
verified

Alaska

Or Alaska! They're as socialistic as it gets, taxing them oil companies for removing their oil. Why didn't the Wasilla Gorilla put a stop to it?

Advertisement

Stay informed — Get the news delivered for free in your inbox.

I'm interested in ...