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Volume 3, Number 7 October, 200

The Insider

This months Greenspace Insider focuses onissues facing Cambria regarding the commodificationof public trust resources and how this may affect fed-

eral, state, and local autonomy and environmental laws.On August 7, 2003, the California Coastal Com-

mission Staff released a draft report entitled Seawater

Desalination and the California Coastal Act and solic-ited comments on the publication. The draft report wassent to interested parties and in-

stalled on the Commissions website,www.coastal.ca.gov. Greenspacemade comments on the draft report,which can be viewed on our website,www.greenspacecambria.org or the

ECOSLO website, www.ecoslo.org.Of particular note was Chap-

ter 3: Public Resource Policies of

the Coastal Act Related to Desali-

nation. The discussion ranged fromthe Public Trust Doctrine to the ef-

fect of International Trade Agree-ments on water services.Converting a non-consumptive resource like

seawater into a consumptive resource like desalinatedwater is fraught with legal challenges and human value

shifts. While the commodification of resources is notnew, the manner in which they become traded, sold,and otherwise profited from has changed.

Fresh air, water, soil, public lands and forestshave traditionally been part of the commons that hu-mans share, protect, and view as belonging to all be-cause these resources sustain life. As our population

increases exponentially, our resources unfortunatelydo not. Elaborate delivery systemsproviding essential resources like

water to large population centershave largely been the responsibilityof government. Corporate globaliza-tion, for better or worse, has influ-

enced traditional governmental re-sponsibility by finding ways to profitfrom privatizing water systems, aided

by International Trade agreements like the North Ameri-

can Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and General Agreemenon Trade Services (GATS). This trend increases the risk tocommunities like Cambria of losing their autonomy and pub

lic control of these resources.Of particular interest is how international trade agree

ments have the likelihood of unraveling 30 years of local, stateand federal resources protection. If Cambria, for instance

sold our water infrastructure system to a private corporation with links to a multinationacorporation that would, in turn, develop adesalination facility and set rates to pay fo

the acquisition and expenses of new infrastructure, they could very likely be exempfrom any environmental review or mitigation

Any harm done to the environment (publicresources) would not be mitigated and, ocourse, money saved by not paying for thedestruction of public trust resources would

go to the shareholders of the corporation.Under privatization the public would

not be able to set water rates based on community reflected values and fairness, such as who pays fo

what kind of service. Rather, corporate stockholders woulddrive the criteria that set water rates on their investment whichwould be tied directly to the return they expect on money

invested. Even more interesting is that many corporationsare acquired by either friendly or hostile takeovers these daysthen stripped of theirtangible assets, reor-

ganized (often left inskeletal form), anddiscarded to sink or

swim based on some-one elses financialbottom line. This, ofcourse, can be trans-

lated into higher waterrates and less servicefor the public at thereceiving end of the

water pipeline.

Public Versus Private Ownership of Water ServicesSeawater as a Public Resource

Desal Plant in Florida

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Post Office Box 1505Cambria, California 93428

(805) 927-2866 - Phone

(805) 927-7530 - Faxe-mail: rick@GreenspaceCambria.org

www.GreenspaceCambria.org

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Permit No. 37

Cambria, CA 93428

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Organization

Ifyouareinterestedinhearingmoreondesalina-

ionandprivatizationissuespleaseletusknow,asmany

haveexpressedaninterestinattendingaforumonthis

ssue.Wewouldensureasafevenuetoexpress

yourbeliefsandconcernsandtheforumwouldbe

facilitatedbyaprofessional.Theprosandconsof

desalwillbeaddressedbyvariousdisciplinesand

diverseviewpoints.

Youcancontactourofficeat927-2866.