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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Politics of Drinking Water
On January 9, 2014, American Water warned 300,000 customers in and around Charleston, West Virginia, that local tap water was no longer safe. Ten thousand gallons of 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol (MCHM), a chemical used to clean coal, had leaked from a rusty holding tank into the Elk River, upstream of the water treatment facility. State officials warned that exposure to the licorice-scented solvent could cause burning in throat, severe eye irritation, non-stop vomiting, trouble breathing or severe skin irritation such as skin blistering. Given the paucity of information on MCHMs effect on the human body, no one could predict the long-term consequences of exposure.
Within 24 hours, a mayors convention was cancelled, restaurants were shut down, and public schools were closed. Traffic clogged around the South Charleston Recreation Center, where the fire department distributed free cases of water, limited to one per vehicle. Its cache was depleted within hours. Bottled water supplies vanished. The National Guard delivered tanks of potable water and FEMA promised additional truckloads. When water shipments arrived at a local Wal-Mart, demand was so high that nervous employees called the cops, requesting guards to stand by while they restocked shelves.
Its no surprise that the West Virginia leak, the more recent Duke Energy coal ash spill, or the newest BP oil rupture rile consumers. Hydration isnt a luxury; its a necessity. Providing access to clean water is a fundamental measure of effective government. When water goes bad, so do political relations. After the MCHM spilled, West Virginia officials made a series of conflicting statements. Two days after Governor Earl Ray Tomblin began lifting the do-not-use order on local taps, the U.S. Center for Disease Control advised that pregnant women continue to avoid Charleston water. In response, Gov. Tomblin back-pedaled: Its a very complicated issue, he said. Im not a scientist.
more
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/12/the-politics-of-drinking-water/384081/
niyad
(113,344 posts)it is NOT to be privatized as some sort of commodity.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,640 posts)And sell it back to us.
niyad
(113,344 posts)that started with the infant formula selling in the third world.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,640 posts)jwirr
(39,215 posts)water. (In 1958 my daughter was born with a severe disability that in all likelihood it was a result of the pollution in the water in our well.)
IMO water quality need to be one of ours and the worlds top priorities.