Rights to Water

## **Introduction**

On the right you may find a name brand item that everyone knows or heard. It's possible you may have this exact same item on the side of your' backpack. Bottled water it's a commodity people utilize everyday. Besides being cheap, it's also sugar free and convenient for people with a hectic life. However, very little people put thought into where did my water come from or how much they actually paid for water.

Every bottle of water opened and drank had to originate from some region. Water doesn't magically appear especially within the plastic bottle we know so well. Ice Mountain bottled water a division of Nestle originates from Evart, Michigan. Nestle pumped 130 million gallons of Michigan Water last year at a price of $200.00 state fee for each ground well. Furthermore, each well can pump 250-400 gallons a minuet. Now imagine the price you pay for a bottle of Ice Mountain water and compare that to the fees Nestle faces, sounds like a steal. Yet, that's not even the worse part because Ice Mountain Water is shipped all over the U.S at a profit from Michigan Water. This brings up the key point of bottled water and water in general. Should there be capitalistic gains off of a resource required for life? We will look at two other key examples in South America for comparison of capitalistic gains with water.

## Petorca, Chile

Augusto Pinochet became dictator of Chile in 1973. Then in the early 1980's the Chicago Boys part of Freedman's "Shock Therapy Economics" came to Pinochet's aid in restructuring the Chilean economy. In 1981 Chile passed the "Water Code", which entails water in the country of Chile can be owned and traded as commodity. This allows individuals and private companies (Avocado Producers) to request water rights that are then allocated from the government. Today there is a saying many people know within Petorca Chile "Oro Verde".

Green gold otherwise known as Avocados transformed the province of Petorca from one of the poorest province in Chile to a hustling agricultural center. The global demand for avocados has pushed business to produce avocados to the Petorca province. Within the province the hill sides of the Andes Mountains provide perfect conditions. Although, with decade long droughts and avocado production water has become a scarcity.

Residents and small farmers within the Petorca province now have dried up rivers, streams, and wells. This requires people to have water shipped in twice a week by truck for water they need. Yet, with people suffering from scarcity of water the Avocado industry seems to be cruising along like it did previously. Remember the 1981 Water Code mentioned prior. The avocado industry large companies which started in 2006 obtained water rights from the Chilean government. The large scale avocado production facilities pull ground water from nearby lakes and streams for irrigation of this thirsty produce. Which then affects the people within the community and small farmers. In all water a crucial resource required for life is utilized for capitalistic gains. When people cannot obtain water for daily life.

## Cochamba, Bolivia

The year is 1982 and Bolivia has just transitioned from a military dictatorship to civilian rule. However, in 1985 hyperinflation occurred decreasing foreign investments for economic growth within Bolivia. With little investments Bolivia turned to the World Bank for loans. The loans given to Bolivia were used for developing and privatizing railways, telecommunications, national airlines and oil. Although, one loan was given in 1997 for improving the water and sanitation systems within Bolivia's largest cities. However, it was on the term of all the improvements made would then be privatized.

In September 1999 a San Francisco corporation Bechtel took control of the city Cochamba's water system. Many of the citizens were unaware and were not allowed to have a say. Prices increased 35%, in comparison an average final monthly bill was $20.00. It may not sound expensive but the majority of the consumers only made $100.00 a month. In terms of cause and effect wide spread protest began against the change from state possession to private possession of public water. In the end on April 11th, 2000 the decision of privatizing the Bolivia's improved water systems was reversed. Furthermore, on February 7th, 2009 the New Bolivian Constitution entails access to water as a fundamental right and assigns this task to the state for providing water. Then in June 2010 on an international level the General Assembly of United Nations recognized the basic human rights to water and sanitation.

## Conclusion

The overall goal of this article is to make people rethink where does the water come from and at what costs. Should people be charged a premium for a resource they need in order to survive. On top of that is capitalistic gains for water morally right? Living within the great lakes region it is easy to forget about freshwater since it's so abundant. But every region is different where water may be a scarcity for the environment of plants and animals or humans who may dwell there.

## References

**Work Cited**

**[1]** Ellison, Garret. “How Does Nestle Get Michigan Water for Practically Nothing?” Mlive, 11 Sept.

2019,

https://www.mlive.com/news/2019/09/how-does-nestle-get-michigan-water-for-practically-nothing.html.

**[2]** López, Aldo Orellana. “Bolivia, 15 Years on from the Water War.” Bolivia, 15 Years on from the

Water War | The Democracy Center,

https://democracyctr.org/article/bolivia-15-years-on-from-the-water-war/.

**[3]** Milne, Nicky. “As Sales Boom, Chile's 'Green Gold' Is Blamed for Water Shortages.” Reuters,

Thomson Reuters, 3 June 2019,

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-water-chile-environment/as-sales-boom-chiles-green-gold-is-blamed-for-water-shortages-idUSKCN1T41AL.