Industrial Water Users Disclose Large Contribution

By NIGEL JAQUISS

Portlanders for Water Reform, the coalition of industrial water consumers aiming to wrest control of water and sewer pricing from the City of Portland has disclosed its first contribution—and it's a big one.

The Portland Mercury first reported Friday evening that Portland Bottling Company gave $25,000 on Sept. 5 towards the effort to qualify a measure for the 2014 ballot that would create an independent board to over see the Water Bureau. The dissident group thinks shoddy management, unnecessary projects and the diversion of ratepayer money to expenditures unrelated to basic services have caused unreasonably high prices.

City officials oppose the measure.

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