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Source: Reuters -
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So they've done the unthinkable, sent a dagger straight through the heart of re-hydration. Yes, locals have banned the sale of bottled water in Bundanoon , a tiny town in the New South Wales heartland.
Talk about making a fuss. The story was seized upon by the world's media, including TVNZ, as I found myself riding shotgun down the highway with TVNZ cameraman Jason at the helm.
Bundanoon is a two hour drive from Sydney, towards Canberra. It was raining hard and the small town barely peeped out from behind the country mist. We could hardly see a thing.
Although, I did catch the strange sight sight of a Vespa motorcycle for sale in the window of the oldest antiques shop I have ever set foot in. I've been keen on one of these bikes for ages, but that's another story and this particular 42 year old scooter cost 8000 bucks, firm!
We drove on.
As it turns out, Bundanoon is famous for its cycling tracks, so I found it quite remarkable, if not down-right dangerous that locals had banned the sale of bottled water. We stopped in at 'Ye Old Bicycle' shop and found Huw Kingston. (He's from Wales).
Now as it turns out, there's a bit more to the banning of bottled water in Bundanoon than what was first reported. Yes, locals want to save the environment from the huge carbon footprint water companies stamp and the mountains of rubbish they create.
But Huw (he's from Wales) told me Bundanoonians also can't stand the sight and sound of large trucks rumbling down their country lane to a natural spring nearby. You see, a water company collects the precious, natural H20 from this spring, trucks it to Sydney, bottles it and then trucks it back to the Bundanoon shop shelves-where it's sold for three hundred times what costs to get the same water out of Bundanoon house tap.
Not any more the town folk said. The village of just 350 residents crammed into the church hall to vote on the matter. Just one brave local and a representative from the water company voted against the proposal to ban the sale of bottled water. We'll have water fountains in the street they shouted, and shops can sell reusable bottles which can be filled up at the fountains for free, they cheered.
I interviewed a number of locals. There was Les the plumber, who strangely kept his hands well hidden inside his blue overalls. John, the real estate agent looked like he was off on the next Tour de France stage in his lycra kit. And Patrick, who donned a knitted pullover with images of lovely black sheep dotted through it. Everyone had it in for the bottled water.
I needed a prop for that point in the story where I say a few words to camera. I bought one of the few remaining bottles of water left in town. Talk about risking life and limb. A gaggle of Bundanoon Grandmas lined me up in their sights. Hey, one shouted, the media has bottled water! What do you think you are doing, threatened another, shaking her zimmer frame madly. Backed up against the lane wall, I quickly explained what I needed the water for and was only released after I promised to take the plastic bottle with me back to Sydney.
Waving goodbye to Huw (he's from Wales), that's exactly what I did.
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