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Blue Gold

Bill M
water-200.jpg

Most of us in the West take it for granted, but from Spain to Bolivia, from China to Europe, and from Australia to California, the struggle for access to clean water is beginning to compete with civilization's lust for oil.  Climate change, global population growth, and pollution are pushing humanity's essential need for clean water down a treacherous path.  Water privatization - unthinkable to many - is a global phenomenon that is growing steadily, and has multinational corporations seeing dollar signs.

Creative Commons Image : "The world of water" by Snap on Flickr

 

 

 

 

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Comments

Gag Reflex

Submitted by Keith M Judge on Fri, 06/06/2008 - 10:34.
I can think of fewer things more inhumane and potentially dangerous than making a commodity of clean water. The potential repercussions of a disenfranchised people not being able to afford clean, drinking water invokes images of such desperation it makes my imagination recoil at the concept. I truly despise corporate monopolies, especially those that capitalize on precious resources.

the drying West

Submitted by ST Frequency on Sat, 06/07/2008 - 05:34.

There are those in the "West" who will soon know what it is like to have no access to water -- specifically, the West of the United States. Nevada, Utah, Arizona in particular face an imminent crisis of dwindling water resources against booming development and population.

See Jon Gertner's essential reporting on the subject, from The New York Times Magazine last year - "The Future is Drying Up"

-st

Strange Communities

Submitted by Keith M Judge on Sun, 06/08/2008 - 13:48.
Living in the desert is supposed to be difficult. I truly don't understand cities like Phoenix that persist in watering their lawns with the trickle of the Colorado while Native Americans are dying of thirst downstream.