Greenwood gold water gets official award
By Erin Perkins
It’s official.
The City of Greenwood now has the trophy plate to prove it has the best tasting municipal water in the world.
City mayor, Nipper Kettle, was presented the award during a “Best Tasting Water in the World” ceremony in Greenwood Friday, May 11.
More than 200 people packed the McArthur Centre in downtown Greenwood to see the award and take their first sip of Greenwood tap water out of a specially designed bottled version of the community’s best kept secret.
“This is a big honour for our city and we are all proud and from the looks of the smiles on your faces we can tell you’re proud too,” Kettle said during the start of the ceremonies which culminated in a luncheon.
In February of this year the city entered a sample of it’s tap water in the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting Competition held in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. The water was taken from well number four, a 110 foot (33.53 meter) well. All the city water is untreated. This was the third time they’d entered a sample into the municipal class of the competition. The first year the water won a bronze, the second year nothing and now the third year it took the gold.
This year’s competition featured more than 100 water samples from around the globe that are judged on things like clarity and taste.
Jill Klein Ronn, a competition representative from Berkeley Springs West Virginia, was there to present the award — a glass plate with the competition information painted on it.
“A win at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting Competition is proof of your excellence,” said Klein Ronn. “Take care of the water, take pride in it, preserve it and keep up the good work.”
“This is such a great occassion,” said MLA Boundary-Similkameon John Slater, who sent Premier Christy Clark’s regrets for not being able to attend herself. “How often does a small community get to be awarded the world’s best?”
He went on to say how good an award like this will be for tourism in the community.
“I think this is a great opportunity. Get (the word) out to Western North America.”
Southern Interior B.C. MP Alex Atamanenko was also present to extend his congratulations and the accolades of Prime Minister Stephen Harper by way of a leather bound letter.
Both Slater and Atamanenko will be taking cases of the ‘liquid gold’ back to the legislature and parliament hill to share with other policitians.
Also on hand were Grand Forks mayor Brian Taylor, Midway mayor Randy Kappes and Regional District Kootenay Boundary Area E director Bill Baird in addition to numerous other city councillors and well wishers.
“I would like to congratulate the best city in the best area in the best province and in the best country in the world,” said Kappes who toasted his best wishes with a swig of the clear stuff straight from the bottle.
The tables in the hall were filled with a bottled version of the precious resource and a running fountain of tap water.
The city had a special bottle designed by Principal-Ripple FX Water Inc. and bottled by Miller Springs under the careful eye of city councillor Barry Noll. The champagne inspired bottle complete with gold top and City of Greenwood crest and a slogan – ‘It’s all about the taste’. The bottled water can still be purchased at most Greenwood businesses.
