Water,
Water, Where?
The
International Attempt to Commodify Water
Editor's
note: For the last three years, I have spent almost all of my time
trying to get a handle on the "big picture". The "little
pictures" are made up of effects, and sometimes causes,
but rarely motives. Its funny how all the "little pictures" don't
always coalesce into a greater understanding until, all at once,
the truth becomes blatently obvious and undeniable.
The
commodification of water has become an issue I find
most disturbing. Is
it possible that you could someday be charged for collecting rainwater
off your roof? You would be surprised at how many trans-national
companies already have stakes in water delivery in this country.
Globally,
we have already entered water scarcity. The Middle East will run
out of fresh water within the next ten years. Sub-Saharan Africa
will run out in the next 5 years. China is considereding moving the
capital to another location because there is no more water in Beijing.
Closer
to home, the mighty Colorado river no longer makes it to the Sea
of Cortez. It trickles out somewhere in the Mexican desert south
of the Arizona border. The Rio Grand, which use to flow into the
Gulf of Mexico now stops some 20 miles short of Brownsville, Texas.
Aquafers all over the country are being depleted far more rapidly
than they can recharge themselves. We are on the verge of a national
water crisis right here in America.
In
the next two decades, the struggle for water will tear apart communities,
exacerbate differences between social classes, and challenge governments
and private organizations to change how they perceive their roles.
- JSB
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Bolivia's
Water War Victory
COCHABAMBA,
BOLIVIA (April 8) - At 10am, President Hugo Banzer places
Bolivia under martial law. This drastic move concludes
a week of protests, general strikes and transportation
blockages that have jerked the country to a virtual standstill,
and follows the surprise announcement of government concession
to protesters' demands to break a $200 million contract
selling Cochabamba's public water system to foreign investors.
The
water system is currently controlled by Aguas del Tunari,
a consortium led by London-based International Water Limited
(IWL), which is itself jointly owned by the Italian utility
Edison and US-based Bechtel Enterprise Holdings. Upon purchasing
the water system, the consortium immediately raised rates
by up to 35 percent. That untenable hike is what sparked
the protests. MORE>> |
Water
Incorporated;
The Commodification Of The World's Water
Global
consumption of water is doubling every 20 years -- more than
twice the rate of human population growth. According to the
United Nations, more than one billion people on Earth already
lack access to fresh drinking water. If current trends persist,
by 2025 the demand for fresh water will rise by 56 percent
and as many as two-thirds of the world's population will be
living with serious water shortages or absolute water scarcity. MORE>> |
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Blue
Gold of the 21st Century
Between
17 and 22 March the second World Water Forum will be meeting
in the Hague, organised by the Dutch government on the basis
of an initiative by the World Water Council (WWC), and including
an international ministerial conference. Several thousand
people are expected to attend.
The
WWC was set up in 1994, with the assistance of the World
Bank, the governments of a number of countries (including
France, the Netherlands and Canada), and the private sector
(for instance the Suez-Lyonnaise des eaux group). In 1996
it gave itself the task of drawing up a long-term "global
vision for water" which might then serve as a basis for analysis
and for drafting a "global water policy". The World Bank
has been pushing such a policy in recent years (1), and has
had the agreement and collaboration of all the relevant organisations
within the United Nations. In order to achieve its objective,
the World Bank has over more or less the same period overseen
the creation of a Global Water Partnership (GWP), with the
aim of encouraging closer relations between public authorities
and private investors. MORE>> |
Privatization
and Commodification of Water
In
July 2001, a major public debate erupted in New Orleans when
the city’s sewage and water board voted on a motion
to privatize the public water system. Forprofit water companies
were invited to submit their bids for operating, maintaining
and managing the city’s water system. A fast track timetable
was also put in place for accelerating decision making on the
proposed water privatization.
In
effect, North America has recently become a prime target
for turning public water systems into lucrative markets for
private water companies. In the U.S., 85 percent of water service
delivery remains in public hands while the public sector accounts
for close to 95 percent of water service delivery. MORE>>
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How
Corporations are planning to take control of local
water services
At
the dawn of the 21st century, a global water crisis is looming.
According to the United Nations, 1.3 billion people in the
world today lack access to clean water while 2.5 billion
do not have adequate sewage and sanitation. No less than
31 countries are considered to be in water stressed areas.
Worldwide demand for water is doubling every 20 years, twice
the rate of population growth. By the year 2025, demand for
fresh water is expected to outstrip global supply by 56 percent.
For
most people around the world, water is not to be treated
like any other commodity to be bought and sold in the market
place. On the contrary, water is essential for both life
and nature. Not only humans, but plants, animals, and the
planet itself depend on having access to adequate supplies
of water for their very survival. For these reasons, water
is considered to be a public trust. That’s why water services
are generally run by public and municipal systems in most
countries today. MORE>>
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Texas-Mexico
water war boils over
A water war between Texas and Mexico has Texans boiling mad,
and they're hoping their former governor, President Bush,
can do something about it during his talks this week with
Mexican President Vicente Fox. The water dispute is just
one of many around the globe - a worrisome trend highlighted
by U.N. statements and a report issued Friday, which the
United Nations has designated World Water Day.
THE
U.S. BORDER dispute stems from a 1944 water treaty in which
Mexico agreed to allow 350,000 acre-feet of water to flow
annually from Mexican streams and tributaries into the Rio
Grande River for use by farmers in south Texas. MORE>> |
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The
Battle for Water
We
are taught in school that the Earth has a closed hydrologic
system; water is continually being recycled through rain
and evaporation and none of it leaves the planet’s atmosphere.
Not only is there the same amount of water on the Earth today
as there was at the creation of the planet, it’s the
same water. The next time you’re walking in the rain,
stop and think that some of the water falling on you ran
through the blood of dinosaurs or swelled the tears of
children who lived thousands of years ago.
While
there will always be the same amount of water, we can render
water unusable for ourselves and for the planet. The growing
scarcity of potable water stems from a variety of causes.
Per capita water consumption is doubling every 20 years,
more than twice the rate of human population growth, which
itself is exploding. Technology and sanitation systems, particularly
those in the wealthy industrialized nations, have encouraged
people to use far more water than they need. Yet even with
this increase in personal water use, households and municipalities
account for only 10 percent of water use. MORE>>
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The
Case for Investing in Water Industry Stocks
The
water industry is comprised of a vast array of companies providing
products and services toward the collection, conveyance, treatment
and monitoring/analysis of water and wastewater for multiple
purposes and end users. As you will see in the table below,
investing in this industry has historically worked very well.
In today’s unsettled world and the resulting instability of
financial markets, we believe that allocating a portion of
one’s portfolio to water investing will improve stability without
sacrificing returns.
Water
is the single most important economic input to the global economy,
and more specifically, to individual enterprises. The disparity
between supply and demand for clean water is an inexorable
problem; yet the relentless demand for its uninterrupted supply
makes it by far the most stable of all commodities – unaffected
by cyclical influences which constantly badger other more typical
input commodities. MORE>> |
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