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McCLOUD,
Calif.—Future wars will be fought over water, some people claim. In fact,
struggles have already surrounded this vital resource.
In
2003 on the flank of the southern Cascade peak, Mt. Shasta, the local
government of the town of McCloud signed a backroom contract with
Nestlé Waters North America. The legally binding contract, good for 50
years and renewable to 100, says that the people of McCloud would need
to ration their water in times of need so Nestlé can bottle their fill.
The
contract between Nestlé and McCloud's Community Services District was
signed before the legally required environmental review process was
done. Because of this violation the contract was first overturned in
court. Then, still without the environmental review process completed,
it was revalidated.
Subsequently,
Nestlé has drafted an environmental impact report (EIR) that is devoid
of science. Scientists say there is no mention in the EIR of the
vitality of the local watershed, which feeds into the Sacramento River:
baseline data, which does not exist, would be the first step for
assessing the impact of the plant.
Nestlé's
plan to bottle 522 million gallons per year in the one million square
foot plant has been condemned by virtually all those involved, except
Nestlé and the McCloud local government. The amount of spring water to
be extracted is stated in the contract, but the amount of groundwater
that can be pumped from the basin is unlimited. This works as a
convenient way for Nestlé to get in and start bottling.
But
the effects of the project will cause "groundwater drawdown,"
a draining of the aquifers. Nobody knows what effects drawing down the
aquifer will have, but any honest person must admit that it will affect
surface water, well water, and regional biota.
The
fake EIR provides pseudo-scientific legitimacy to the water privatizers'
claim that opening up McCloud's resources to privatization will provide
jobs. McCloud is an economically depressed town. It was a
"thriving" mill town some decades back, but as the trees
became scarcer the mill made cutbacks after cutbacks. In 2003 the mill
shut down for good.
Certainly
unemployment is a problem in McCloud. Nestlé claims it will provide 240
jobs with an average starting wage of $10 an hour. But for the highly
automated water-bottling industry, these jobs would be replaced with
machines as soon as the bosses could afford it. Privatizing their water
in trade for temporary low-wage employment is a bad deal for the people
of McCloud.
For
Nestlé, selling small bottles of pristine spring water is a quick way
to get even richer. The company will have to pay 1/64 of a cent for
each gallon of spring water, which will then be divided into small
bottles and sold in gas stations for $5 to $10.
The
privatization of McCloud's water would truly be a watershed event. The
springs that feed the town of McCloud are essential tributaries to the
Sacramento River. After the river enters the Sacramento Valley, it is
the main source of water for California's agriculture. For these
reasons it is necessary to make sure that the water remains in public hands.
But
as the local government has clearly demonstrated, it is not enough to
have the servants of the capitalist class in public office control the
people's water. They have demonstrated that they are perfectly willing
to trade a peoples' water—considered by many a human right—for an
abstract idea of economic viability.
Letting
multinational corporations move in and take the cake is nothing new.
And each time these neoliberal policies have been tried, they have been
found to have no benefit for workers. They have never helped develop
infrastructure that fulfils human needs.
Neoliberal
policy in general, and this project in particular, works out to be a
wonderfully profitable deal for the capitalists. It is especially good
for the rulers since workers will foot the bill for the upkeep of roads
and the waterline, making the whole thing possible, through their
taxes.
This
project must be viewed in the context of global-warming trends. The
source of water for people in the area, and in the region, is the
surrounding mountain snowfields and glaciers, which are melting as
temperatures rise. This year will surely go on record as one of the
driest for the region. The showdown is inevitable: water for profit, or
water for environmental health and human needs.
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