Water is about life itself. But for giant corporations like Vivendi, Suez, Perrier/Nestle 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 the fight against corporate take overs of municipal systems is occurring in Lawrence MA, Stockton CA, New Orleans LA, Indianapolis IN and many other communities. 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 in order to keep fueling the demand for bottled water on the premise that municipal water is of poor quality so it is better to drink bottled water which costs 1000 times more. Nice profit when corporations pay little if nothing for the water they pump from Mother Nature.

Bulk water. Already in California and Texas, high-flying entrepreneurs such as T. Boone Pickens and Ric Davidge, a James Watt protege, are proposing to withdraw 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.