Plant Development

1. When will construction begin?

Ozarka plans to begin construction on the new bottling facility in January 2002.

2. How big will the facility be?

The initial bottling plant will be 400,000 square feet and the site plan allows for the plant to expand to 1 million square feet. At start-up, there will be two bottling lines.

3. What are the capital costs?

At start-up, the capital investment will exceed $50 million. At full build-out, the total investment will reach $150 million.

Employment

4. How many people will Ozarka employ and who will get these jobs?

Initially Ozarka will employ approximately 56 people and over the next three years that number should increase to approximately 300 people.  These jobs will be given to individuals that meet Ozarka’s employment requirements.  It is our hope that many of these positions will be filled by Wood County residents, however, qualified individuals from around the state can apply.

5. How much will the jobs pay? Benefits?

The salary range for hourly employees will be from $10-$20 per hour depending on position.  We offer full medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k) with matching funds up to 3%, medical and dependent care reserve accounts, retirement plan, and profit sharing.

6. Is training available for new Ozarka employees?

Each employee will go through a six to eight week orientation and training process to ensure that they understand what it takes to be part of the Ozarka team and are fully prepared to meet the many challenges of a new facility.  This training will be done locally and in our sister facility in Dallas.  Some of the training will be focused on operational skills and some of it will be focused on teamwork and communication skills.

Economy

7. What economic benefits will Ozarka bring to Wood County?

Ozarka will contribute to the overall tax base in the County with additional payroll, payroll taxes, property taxes and associated sales taxes from its bottling facilities.
Economy Continued:


By the end of 2003, the Wood County project is expected to create:

Based on an Economic Impact Assessment performed by The Celero Group in Austin, TX total projected revenue, including the multiplier, is expected to reach $1.5 million at full build-out.

Aside from those economic improvements Ozarka strives to make a positive contribution in each of its spring site communities. Some examples include sponsoring civic and community events, participating in school functions, providing scholarships, and supporting the efforts of County fire departments.

Community

8. What kind of community involvement can we expect from Ozarka?

Perrier is committed to preserving and enhancing the character of our spring site communities. Ozarka will operate its facility in the most environmentally sound manner and upholds a strong commitment to community, education and the preservation of our natural resources. Our Good Neighbor Policy is based on this credo of respect and encompasses the various ways Ozarka will contribute to the community.

One of our most important contributions to our spring site communities involves education. Ozarka is passionate about teaching the importance of water education. In 2002, Ozarka will sponsor Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) seminars for all teachers and schools in its spring site communities, including Wood County, that want to include a Texas-Education-Agency-approved curriculum in the classroom. For those teachers who have completed the course, Ozarka will create special “WET” accounts to allow teachers to provide classroom learning materials without any personal expense.

Further, Ozarka created an “Every Drop Counts” scholarship fund of $30,000 annually. Each local spring site community will receive a $2500 scholarship to be awarded in the local Independent School District to a high-school senior interested in pursuing education in the Earth Sciences at an accredited four-year college or university. A statewide competition will reward two students $10,000 each for their pursuit of an undergraduate degree in the Earth Sciences.

Environment

9. What will Ozarka do to protect Wood County water supplies, wetlands, etc.

Ozarka is committed to producing high quality spring water with no adverse impact on the environment. Our environmental policy mandates that, at a minimum, we maintain strict compliance with environmental regulations at federal, state, and local levels. We take only the amount of water that a spring can safely yield, leaving enough intact to supply the needs of the ecosystem and of other people who depend on the resource. In times of dry weather conditions Ozarka’s Natural Resource Manager may reduce collection rates (as it has at Roher Spring) and will closely monitor water levels during adverse conditions to best protect the vitality of the spring and the surrounding environment.

We meet our commitment to environmental excellence by requiring comprehensive testing before any site development takes place, establishing long-term monitoring, and taking all necessary measures to protect endangered species. We preserve open spaces and protect sensitive ecosystems through the protection and preservation of the vast recharge areas of our spring sources. Our comprehensive long-term monitoring practice covers: spring level, groundwater levels, fens, down stream, fish studies, stream pass by flows, wetland monitoring, microinvertibrates, flora and fauna, rainfall monitoring, and endangered species.

10. What kind of guarantee, if any, will Ozarka provide for wells in Wood County?

Ozarka will provide neighbors with systematic science-based assurance that there will be no adverse impacts from our operations and they will have all access to relevant scientific data. Also, long-term monitoring has shown (based on 20 months of research and analysis) that any draw down effects from water collection are localized and do not extend beyond the property boundaries. However, since our business involves collection of a shared natural resource, Ozarka has formalized a policy for good water resource relations that can be found in the Good Neighbor Policy.

11. What will Ozarka do if we have another drought, like summer 1998?

Ozarka maintains an ongoing commitment to safe spring water collection, which includes curtailing spring water operations if the Natural Resource Manager determines that the spring flow due to drought is too diminished.

In 1997, NWNA created the position of Natural Resource Manager, whose main responsibility is to identify, develop and safeguard the sources that provide our spring water product. Managers operate autonomously of production needs so that the best decisions regarding the health and vigor of the spring sources can be made objectively and systematically. The Natural Resource Manager in Texas routinely alters water collection rates as needed during dry periods to preserve the environmental health of the spring discharge and surrounding area. For example, during the drought of 1998 in Texas, Ozarka voluntarily reduced spring water collection by 35% at Roher Spring in Henderson County. For six months, Ozarka operated at a reduced rate until area rains replenished and recharged the spring water aquifer to allow for bottling without adversely impacting the source.