Water, profit and public health

Walkerton warns of worldwide fight over clean water and who controls it

By: Suzanne Elston

"The wars of the 21st century will be fought over water."

  The deaths caused by the E-coli epidemic in Walkerton, Ontario last week shocked the country. In Canada, our supply of fresh water is so abundant that it makes headline news when anyone's water supply becomes contaminated. But for many countries around the world, this type of epidemic is commonplace.
 

Half the world's six billion people don't even have enough water for adequate sanitation. Meanwhile in North America, the average person uses 1,300 gallons of water every day.

  More than five million people - most of them children - die every year from illnesses caused by poor drinking water. Thanks to water pollution, expanding populations, and the inequitable distribution of resources, 1.5 billion people don't have access to clean drinking water. Half the world's six billion people don't even have enough water for adequate sanitation. Meanwhile in North America, the average person uses 1,300 gallons of water every day.
  By many accounts, the situation can only get worse. The United Nations estimates that by the year 2025, as much as two-thirds of the world population may experience moderate to high water stress. The global situation is becoming so critical that even the Chairman of the World Water Commission is worried. Ismail Serageldin says "the wars of the 21st century will be fought over water."
 

Over 60 per cent of humanity lives by one of the world's 250 river basins. In every case, at least two countries are already arguing over access to that water.

  In fact, the unrest has already begun. Over 60 per cent of humanity live by one of the world's 250 river basins. In every case, at least two countries are already arguing over access to that water. In March, martial law was declared in Bolivia to quell riots that began when the price of water doubled after the government privatized its distribution.
  Rather than promote a global effort to conserve and protect water resources, this looming crisis has prompted the move to commodify it. Canada currently holds 20 per cent of the world's supply of fresh water and investors are proposing to export and sell bulk quantities of it abroad for profit. None of the schemes proposed would help people who lack access to sustainable supplies of clean water, because companies are motivated by profit and not public interest. Water shipped abroad would only be bought by the few who could pay for it. In India, some households are already spending as much as 25 per cent of their incomes on water.
  Unfortunately, Canadians may have little choice about what happens to their water resources. Under the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), bulk water exports are not protected. In October 1999, Sun Belt Water Inc. of California filed a $10.5 billion (US) suit against the Government of Canada under Chapter 11 of the NAFTA. In the suit, the company claims that it has been "mistreated" by the BC government because it banned the bulk exports of water to California. While the case is still pending, it is unlikely that the tribunal with side in favour of the Canadian government.
 

"The federal government needs to ban bulk water exports and go back to the table and get water out of NAFTA. If they had done that 16 months ago, instead of starting down this foolish road to try and protect trade deals instead of water, we would be well on our way to having water protected from bulk exports and privateers."

  "Canada's record in defending Canadian policies and laws from trade challenges is pretty dismal," said Steven Shrybman, Executive Director of West Coast Environmental Law Association, and the author of the only Canadian legal opinion on the impact of trade agreements on bulk water exports. "In recent months, we've seen adverse trade rulings concerning the Auto Pact, split-run magazines, supply management and, most recently, drug patent laws. The assurances that the federal government is now giving around water should remind Canadians of the assurances this same government has made about all of these earlier cases."
  Jamie Dunn, water campaigner with the Council of Canadians, believes that the solution is for the government of Canada to ban all bulk water exports and force a renegotiation of the NAFTA. "The federal government needs to ban bulk water exports and go back to the table and get water out of NAFTA. If they had done that 16 months ago, instead of starting down this foolish road to try and protect trade deals instead of water, we would be well on our way to having water protected from bulk exports and privateers."
  Unfortunately, NAFTA is only the beginning. Investors see water as the oil of the 21st century. Provisions within the World Trade Organization (WTO) prevent countries from limiting water exports. Any country that attempts to do so could face devastating sanctions from the WTO. As a result, the control of water resources is emerging as a primary political and environmental issue. Water was high on the agenda of WTO protesters in Seattle last year, and again at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) protests in Washington this spring. The protesters see access to adequate water supplies as a human rights issue, not an economic one.
  Within Canada, privatization is becoming a major issue. At present our fresh water is publicly owned and controlled. However, private companies (both national and international) are increasingly vying for control of water treatment, delivery and sewage services. Some municipalities are exploring public-private partnerships in the provision of water services. The Ontario government has been pushing water privatization for several years.
  While the war over water has yet to be fought, it's clear that Canada's bountiful water resources will put us right in the middle of the battle.

Suzanne Elston is a syndicated newspaper columnist, radio commentator and motivational speaker, but considers being a parent her most important job. Her most recently published work is a contribution to Sweeping the Earth: Women Taking Action for a Healthy Planet. Along with her husband Brian and their three wonderful children, she lives in their the family's 1827 farmhouse. Suzanne can be contacted at selston@tvo.org. Suzanne's Straight Goods column appears bi-weekly.

Get More/Do More
Write: Lloyd Axworthy, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and demand that the Government of Canada immediately adopt federal legislation to ban bulk water exports. Snail mail: House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0A6 (no postage required) fax: (613) 996-3443, e-mail: Axworthy.L@parl.gc.ca.

Maude Barlow, National Chair of The Council of Canadians has written a groundbreaking paper on the privatization of the world's water entitled "Blue Gold". For ordering information contact The Council of Canadians toll-free at 1-800-387-7177 or check out the website at www.canadians.org.

Global Environment Outlook 2000, produced by the United Nations Environment Program, provides an up-to-date assessment of the environmental crisis facing humanity. It can be ordered from the UNEP website at www.unep/org/geo2000.

Water facts* More than five million people, most of them children, die every year from illnesses cause by drinking poor quality water. North Americans use 1,300 gallons of water per person, every day. By 2025, the UN estimates that 47% of the world's population will experience water stress. After the Water Board was privatized in Sydney, Australia, thousands of workers lost their jobs and the consumer price for water doubled in four years. When plants currently under construction are completed, the semiconductor industry will consume 500 billion gallons (1.500 billion litres) of water and produce 100 billion gallons (300 billion litres) of wastewater each year. * Source: Blue Gold: The Global Water Crisis and the Commodification of the World's Water Supply, A Special Report issued by the International Forum on Globalization, by Maude Barlow, (1999).

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