The company that sells Arrow brand bottled water won a court ruling that ruled a California water regulator, which ordered in 2023 to stop allocating millions of gallons of water from San Bernardino National Forest.

Fresno County Superior Court Judge Robert Whalen Jr. in his ruling The state water control board's order "out of its authorization."

Board of Directors Ordered the company The Bluetriton brand stops most of the water taken out of mountain water tunnels and drilling holes near San Bernardino. The agency staff conducted an investigation and determined that the company had transferred water from the spring without the right to valid water, and the board issued a "stop and stop" order.

The judge found that the National Water Commission "misunderstood and inappropriate application" state law. The legal issue, he said, is “no relation to water rights,” citing a provision that states that the board of directors has no authority to regulate groundwater.

A spokesman for Bluetriton Brands said the company appreciated the court's decision, which confirmed that the National Water Commission "overtakes its power to issue ceasefires and termination orders" aimed at the company's operations at Arrowhead Springs in Strawberry Canyon.

Board spokesman Jackie Carpenter said officials from the state water control board are analyzing the court's ruling.

"The National Water Commission strongly disagrees with the court's ruling and believes that the law, engineering and hydrological records in this case demonstrate a reasonable basis for its 2023 ruling," Carpenter said. "The board is evaluating whether to appeal the ruling."

The company's bottled water pipes are also located at the center of two other lawsuits pending in the Riverside District Court.

In a case before District Judge Jesus Bernal, the company is challenging the U.S. Forest Service’s 2024 decision to deny its Apply for a new license Continue to operate its pipelines and other water infrastructure in national forests. The agency ordered the company to close the action and submit plans to remove its pipelines and equipment from federal land.

In another lawsuit, the local environmental group saved our Forest Association. yes Sue the Forest Services Departmentthe agency violated federal law by allowing the company to continue blowing water and alleged that water removal has greatly reduced the flow of strawberry streams and caused significant environmental damage.

The company denied that its use of water was harming the environment and believed that it should be allowed to continue using water from national forests.

Rachel Doughty, an attorney for Save Our Forest Association, said the Forest Service is right to seek to deny a company’s license.

"I want water to be there in the creek," Doughty said. "It's a goal to benefit from public lands, where the water remains on the land."

If the Forest Service decision is established, it will prevent the company from using its brand arrows of 100% spring water from the same name.

Springs in the mountains north of San Bernardino have become a source of bottled water for generations, named after the natural rock formations of arrows.

A system of 4-inch steel pipes collects water flowing through gravity from various sites on steep hills above the stream. Records show that about 319 acres-foot or 104 million gallons flowing through the company's network of pipelines in 2023, filled a roadside tank that trucks picked up water and dragged it to the bottling plant.

State officials said the first facilities to transfer water in the Strawberry Creek Basin were built in 1929 and over the years, the system expanded as further drilling holes were drilled into the hillside.

The company has a federal "special use" license for many years, allowing it to use its pipelines and other water infrastructure in national forests. The Forest Services Agency charges a licensing fee of $2,500 per year. There is no charge for water.

Controversy over desert sunshine broke out Report In 2015, the Forest Service allowed Nestle (which was subsequently operated) to pump water using a 1988 license listed as the expiration date.

Then Forest Service Comment started License and 2018 Grant a new license Up to five years. Revelation about Nestle blowing water from the forest triggered The opposition's outpouring And filed some complaints with California regulators challenging the company's water rights statement, which led to the company's water rights claims National Survey.

Bluetriton took over Nestlé’s North American bottled water division in 2021, by private equity firm One Rock Capital Partners and Investment Metropoulos & Co. When purchasing, the pipeline operation was taken over.

Last year, Bluetriton merged with Primo Water Corp. to form a new company called Primo Brands Corp.has dual corporate headquarters in Tampa, Florida and Stamford, Connecticut.

In addition to sites in the San Bernardino National Forest, arrow bottled water comes from various other spring locations in the northern and southern California, as well as one spring in Colorado and another in British Columbia, Canada, the company said.