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The New Economic Market: Water: Difference between revisions
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The New Economic Market: Water (view source)
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“Worldwide water supply to every one” was the goal in the 80ties. The governments and development organisations thought to reach the goal, to provide the world population with high quality water with public funds. In the 90ties world wide water supply should be organised and improved by private companies. They were equated with characteristics as efficient, productive, profitable, flexible and innovative. On the contrary public suppliers were given characteristics as corrupt, bureaucratic, acting without flexibility and low quality. It is the truth that some of the characteristics of public supplier are correct, in particular in developing countries, but the decline of the public sector is caused by debts, the macroeconomic situation and the absence of democracy. The negative characteristics were used to legitimate the privatisation of the water-sector. Further, in times of low national and regional budgets the water supply is a burden and too expensive. In the future the public water sector will keep its importance, particularly concerning the water supply of poor people, which will not happen without state aid. | “Worldwide water supply to every one” was the goal in the 80ties. The governments and development organisations thought to reach the goal, to provide the world population with high quality water with public funds. In the 90ties world wide water supply should be organised and improved by private companies. They were equated with characteristics as efficient, productive, profitable, flexible and innovative. On the contrary public suppliers were given characteristics as corrupt, bureaucratic, acting without flexibility and low quality. It is the truth that some of the characteristics of public supplier are correct, in particular in developing countries, but the decline of the public sector is caused by debts, the macroeconomic situation and the absence of democracy. The negative characteristics were used to legitimate the privatisation of the water-sector. Further, in times of low national and regional budgets the water supply is a burden and too expensive. In the future the public water sector will keep its importance, particularly concerning the water supply of poor people, which will not happen without state aid. | ||
Virtual water | |||
Virtual water is the amount of water that is necessary to produce some thing. Per example, to produce 1 kg flour, 1500 L of water are necessary. Water is necessary to clean the corn and the machines, to produce the electricity that is used for the machines, to produce the gas for the transportation and a lot more. | |||
To calculate the amount of water that a county utilizes, it s necessary to consider the amount of virtual water too, that is used to produce the products that the country imports. | |||
There are some possibilities to reduce the amount of virtual water and to dispense water more equally. | |||
One possibility is to transport unused water from a region with an abundance of water to a region with low water abundance. This concept is used sparely. Per example in Colorado in North America , a region with a high water abundance, the unused water is transported through pumps over the Rocky Mountains to a region with a low water abundance, California. | |||
An other possibility to reduce the amount of virtual water is to use the water surplus in regions with a high water amount to produce goods that need a lot of water to be produced and to export them after they were produced. Then the water does not need to be exported. | |||
The next thing to think about is, how much water can be saved, if the product would be sold in the same regions were they were produced? The problem is that a lot of products cant be produced in some regions, as rice in Germany per example, because there are not the right climate conditions. | |||
The consumption of food out of the region is never the less an important aspect, even if it is not possible with every kind of goods. | |||
References | |||
Loewe,Jens: Das Wasser Syndikat.Dornach 2007 | |||
http://www.unesco.org/water/ | |||
Stadler,Lisa. Hoering, Uwe: Das Wasser- Monopoly. Zürich 2003 | |||
Barsig, Michael. Becker, Frank: Wasser- Waffe, Ware, Menschenrechte? München 2005 | |||
Mauser, Wolfram: Wie lange reicht die Ressource Wasser? Frankfurt am Main 2007 | |||