This is in response to recent news about an award given to Poland Spring and the resulting letters to the editor in the Sun Journal.

I congratulate Poland Spring for earning an award for its economic development work and commitment to the environment from the Maine Development Foundation. Because I work at the Poland plant and live in the town of Poland, I know firsthand that it is a company committed to the environment and to local people.

I’m proud of the fact that we’re good stewards of the environment, helping to protect and conserve land, recycling more than 91 percent of what we use in our plants, and working to manage water-use sustainability. Poland Spring also uses the lightest half-liter bottle ever produced to bottle water, and we’ve got the largest biodiesel truck fleet in Maine.

That’s why Poland Spring has such a good record with the towns where we work, as Alison Hagerstrom, executive director of the Greater Franklin Development Corp., pointed out Sept. 19 in an article. It is part of the company’s core value to be open and transparent.

A few anti-bottled water activists have made many irrational statements in the past few weeks that have really confused the issue. I hope others can see through the rhetoric and stand up for the facts.

Poland Spring is a good, clean company that takes care of its people, and takes care of the environment.

Douglas Patenaude, Poland