STOP THE PRIVATIZING OF WATER

Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke wrote a book called Blue Gold about companies such as Enron and Bechtel trying to take over water systems and charge high prices for water. Water is a human right, not something to privatize and gouge people with high prices. They ask that people oppose the commercial trade in water, support the anti-dam movement, confront the World Bank, and International Monetary Fund (which fund these rip-offs), and challenge the water privatizers. They say that water belongs to the earth and to all species and that access to clean water is a basic human right. Stop the privatization, globalization, and commercialization of water and municipal water systems. The main companies trying to take over water and charge a lot for it are: Suez, Vivendi, RWE (Thames), SAUR.,and E.ON. Stop the pollution of water. Stop the inefficient use of water for crops in inappropriate dry areas. Replace inefficient field and row flooding with drip irrigation or spraying.

A Bechtel led consortium bought the municipal water company in Cocachamba, Bolivia, in 1999. They raised the rates beyond what people could afford. The company banned local people from using traditional springs, pumps, or gathering the water from their roofs into cisterns. People protested in the streets. One was killed and many were injured. The protests continued. Bechtel was force to flee. The company continued to sue Bolivia for lost future profits.