New Signs the Tide May Be Shifting Against Water Privatization

“In the first hours of 2010, the city of Paris, whose water system has been under various forms of mixed public and private management for much of the last century, took back public control of its water utility. The decision is emblematic of changes occurring throughout the world, with the wave of utility privatizations ebbing in the face of mismanagement, dismal community relations and a rising tide of concern, in the developing world especially, about whether denial of affordable, safe water constitutes an abuse of human rights.”

“Veolia and Suez, founding members of the World Water Council, have successfully influenced World Bank policies of privatizing water management, giving rise to privatization’s moniker as “the French model.” In order to better impact international policy, the two companies created the World Water Council in 1996. Uniting hundreds of actors in the water sector, the World Water Council counts among its members global agencies like the World Bank, local NGOs and municipalities, as well as municipal water systems such as the Société des Eaux de Marseille (whose shareholders include Veolia, Suez, and la Saur).”

read more: AlterNet