The Latest News...
Our statement for
World Water Day, March 22. We commend those working to establish
access to water and sanitation as a human right, and warn that
commodification of water is incompatible with water justice. Read more here.
Is Nestlé
"branding" a new generation of consumers? How the multinational
celebrates World Water Day here.
Water in Washington
State: Citizens organizing to have a say in Anacortes and protect the
Skagit River
On
Sept. 13, 2010, the people of Anacortes, Wash., opened their Sunday
paper to read the headline, “Anacortes water, bottled?” The next
evening, the City of Anacortes, Wash., approved selling five million
gallons of municipal water from the Skagit River for thirty years to
Tethys Enterprises of Everett, Wash. Read more here.
We support debate on rights of nature. The
United Nations is currently considering a resolution to have the Rights
of Nature debated by governments on Mother Earth Day, April 22, 2011.
More here.
Read our letter to
Oregon's Water Resources Department commenting on a proposed water
rights exchange to benefit Nestlé's proposed Cascade Locks
bottling plant here.
Alliance for
Democracy signs on to letter calling for strong anti-privatization
language in the UN's "Right to Water" resolution
The UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution the end of
September which recognizes the human right to water and sanitation, but
we're concerned that the language of the resolution leaves the door
open to privatization. Read the text of the letter here.
New Hampshire bill
enables community protection for groundwater
Thanks to the diligent work of Bill McCann, AfD's New Hampshire
organizer for the Defending Water for Life Campaign, New Hampshire now
has a state law that enables towns to pass local ordinances to protect
groundwater. Read more!
Welcome Ryan Clark!
Ryan is our new Defending Water in Maine organizer. More here...
Read Defending Water for Life posts
on
the
AfD
blog
|
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Water
is about life itself. But for giant corporations like
Vivendi, Suez,
Perrier/Nestlé and Bechtel, water is about profits. Around the
world, local communities are fighting the devastating impacts of
corporations and entrepreneurs coming into communities to make a
profit. It is the "Blue Gold" rush.
The Blue Gold seekers treat water as a commodity rather than a
fundamental human right which should be protected as a public trust.
The threat comes in three forms:
·
Municipal water/sewer systems. Here in the United States
communities have fought to keep municipal water under public control in
Lawrence MA, Stockton CA, New Orleans LA, Indianapolis IN and many
other communities. Privatization is touted as a way to control costs in
times of tight city budgets, but it leads to higher rates, poorer
service, and the loss of good-paying jobs. Privatization is a global
problem, too. In South Africa, communities are fighting the
installation of pre-paid water meters.
· Bottled Water.
In
other
communities,
the
fight
is
against
corporate
take-over
of
local
springs
and
over-pumping
of
groundwater
or
municipal
water
in
order
to
keep
fueling
the
demand
for
bottled
water.
Soft-drink
companies
have
sold
the
public
on
single-use
plastic
bottles
on
the
premise
that
municipal
water
is of poor quality, but consumers are catching on, and
beginning to refuse to pay to drink a beverage than costs up to 1000
times more than it does from the tap. But corporations will fight for
the profits they used to count on when they paid little if nothing for
the water they pump from Mother Nature.
· Bulk water.
High-flying entrepreneurs have proposed withdrawing water from aquifers
and wild rivers so they can profit by transporting it to water-hungry
cities. The Alliance for Democracy is working with communities and
linking with other organizations to stop these corporate takeovers.
Campaign Coordinators:
National and East Coast
|
Ruth
Caplan
Washington, DC
202-244-0561
rcaplan [at] igc [dot] org |
West Coast
|
Nancy
Price
nancytprice [at] juno [dot] com
|
State Websites:
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