WACONOMICS: Redefining Water's Role in Our Economy by Michael Zitron

Author:Michael Zitron
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-63393-430-6
Publisher: Koehler Books
Published: 2015-03-22T04:00:00+00:00

When states turn their municipalities over to private firms, the people in the poorest countries with water abundance have lower income-to-water rates—household’s income divided by a household’s monthly water bill. They do not have enough money for the water fees imposed relative to all needs. Consider it like credit. Poverty needs credit but gets no support from the banks. Wealthier individuals do not need credit, but qualify for its access. It appears in developing countries that involuntary debt must come before credit—as suffocating from debt is then a riskier endeavor lured by intolerable interest rates. So big multinational institutions like the IMF, UN, and World Bank leverage their multinational interests with more tolerable loan structures for the poor.

Poor households, under privatization, “end up paying water prices that are as much as ten times higher than high income households,” and “that average price of water declines as household income increases,” according to Cristina David. This was the case in Manila, Philippines among Bechtel and SUEZ with the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewage privatization.

The three largest water companies are known all over the world, but sometimes by different names. They are Vivendi Environment (also known as Société des Eaux de Marseille, Compagnie Générale des Eaux, or Veolia), SUEZ (Lionnaise Des Eaux), and RWE Thames. Talks of mergers have already begun. Their emerging role seems to be taking control of developing nations’ water supplies. In 1990, about fifty-one million people got their water from private companies, according to water analysts. After its last update, that figure was then estimated at more than three hundred million.

These companies have even gained contracts in US cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Tampa and many more. They rarely use their true names; for example, SUEZ equates to United Water in Atlanta, Georgia. “There isn’t an example in the world where there hasn’t been a hike in water rates” upon their arrival, according to Blue Gold: World Water Wars. After SUEZ took over water contracts in Atlanta, Georgia, Atlantans were boiling their water—and these are citizens in rich nations. We’re going to need to remember this later . . .

“The evidence that markets work badly is less glaring in advanced countries,” Krugman and Obstfeld wrote. What happens when SUEZ’s model turns against the United States, slowly administering less glaring evidence at home?

JeanLuc Touly, the accountant of thirty years for Vivendi/Veolia Corporation, spoke in FLOW about the expertise he gained in their work environment.

These companies date back 150 years. And they were created by bankers; this is what you need to know. These multinational corporations are by no means philanthropic organizations. So the progressive language of these multinationals is truly scandalous. Because they say, “We are the ones who will end poverty with regards to access to water...” But how could Vivendi shareholders wait 10 to 15 years to bring water to people who can’t pay for it? They are not interested in that at all.

“What was being sought by the architects of the new economic

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