What if you were told you could stay free and not become a slave as long as you paid for that right? What if you were told that in developing countries, people could have a right to not be kidnapped and brutally murdered, but only if they had enough money to pay for it? Everyone would be outraged and rightfully so, so why don’t we care that this natural human right, the right to water, is being taken away? Because it isn’t devastating in an obvious way, because it isn’t romantic and most people think that it doesn’t affect them.

Well, most people are right. At this moment their lives, they are not being directly affected by the commodification of this precious natural resource. They believe that it is only a problem for developing countries or the small towns and they don’t understand the fuss. The problem with this belief is that it is incorrect; most people just don’t see how it is affecting their life.

In small farming towns all across the world, Nestle buys a piece of land and the local right to natural drinking water from the aquifers for the “crops” on that piece of land for a whooping $2.25 per million liters a month. In that month, Nestle accesses the aquifer and bottles and sells around a million liters of water. It continues to do this month after month until the aquifers are effectively dried up. Then, it leaves the town essentially destitute, leaving these farming towns with no water for their crops. With no crops being grown in places that used to be major crop producers, there is a risk of running out of food, and an economic crash.

This stunts the growth of the area, especially in developing countries. Many of the developing countries do not have access to clean drinking water unless they buy water bottles, which makes them dependent on these corporate giants. This slows down the growth and development in the area instead of helping them achieve self reliance. This could be done, as a solution for example, through creating water purification systems that will in the long run be a major contributor to the area’s development.

The most devastating effect of the commodification of water that affects us directly is the danger of water scarcity and droughts. One of the most important global environmental campaigns at the moment is the effort to stop climate change, and one major part of that is to stop the Ice Caps from melting. Not only will stopping this protect arctic animals, but also fresh water, as the Ice Caps are the largest resource of fresh water left in the world. As the Ice Caps melt, we lose this water as it seeps into the ocean. Consequently, natural drinking water is an endangered natural resource.

What is a natural resource? It’s a physical entity necessary for the survival of an organism, which can be depleted, and one of the most necessary natural resources is water.

Water does make up a majority of our world, but that does not mean we can use it. In order for humans to drink ocean water, it has to be put through an extensive process that harms the environment. Not only is it ridiculously expensive, but it will again lead to the commodification of water.

Here in Canada, the BC government allows Nestle to withdraw fresh water for $2.25 per million liters. Is it okay to commodify water–the basic human right? Should we be concerned about the potential impact of large-scale water bottling in regards to future water scarcity and droughts? Companies like Nestle commodify a human right and have little to no resistance against them. If Nestle isn’t stopped, they could cause social, economic and environmental problems not only for small towns and developing countries, but also for the entire world.

The most enraging part of this horrible infringement on human rights is that the government isn’t doing anything so there have been many petitions started, the most successful one being http://storyofstuff.org. After you have signed the petition sit with friends and share the tragedy and drink anything but nestle.

By Jessica Patterson

Please note that opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views and values of The Blank Page.