Published on May 16, 2013
- Reports:
The report is based on research conducted at the Political Economy Research Institute of the University of Massachusetts Amherst to compile a ranking of the Toxic 100 Water Polluters.The report shows that leading energy and chemical manufacturing companies are dumping massive amounts of toxic chemicals into surface waters, putting in danger the lives and wellbeing of those exposed to the resulting pollution.
Published on April 23, 2013
- Fact Sheets:
Nestlé Waters is determined to build and operate a water bottling plant in the Columbia River Gorge town of Cascade Locks, seeking to bottle and sell essential spring water resources.
Published on April 04, 2013
- Reports:
The 2008 global financial crisis left many governments around the world with serious fiscal challenges. Eroded tax bases and growing health and retirement costs created or worsened local budget deficits across the United States, and a sovereign debt crisis rattled the European Union. Instead of confronting these problems head-on, a number of public officials across the globe sought to lease or sell public water and sewer systems to fund ongoing government functions or to pay down liabilities. That is, they have tried to use water privatization to create the illusion of having balanced the budget, when in fact they are just digging the hole deeper.
Published on November 14, 2012
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Promoters of modern drilling and fracking celebrate the industry’s newfound ability to extract oil and natural gas from shale and other tight rock formations, calling it an energy “revolution,” a “paradigm-shifter,” a “rebirth” and a “game changer.” One recent report claims that North America might soon become “the new Middle East,” a net exporter of oil and natural gas. In April 2012, ConocoPhillips’s CEO at the time called shale gas a “blessing.” But for whom is it really a blessing?
Published on October 15, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Promoters of modern drilling and fracking celebrate the industry’s newfound ability to extract oil and natural gas from shale and other tight rock formations, calling it an energy “revolution,” a “paradigm-shifter,” a “rebirth” and a “game changer.” One recent report claims that North America might soon become “the new Middle East,” a net exporter of oil and natural gas. In April 2012, ConocoPhillips’s CEO at the time called shale gas a “blessing.” But for whom is it really a blessing?
Published on September 06, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Investment bankers and other major financial players are increasingly interested in taking control of water and sewer services across the United States. Private equity vehicles are armed with more than $100 billion for infrastructure worldwide. Although most deals in the U.S. water utility market have involved existing private sector companies, a number of fund managers anticipate that the ongoing fiscal crisis will drive some governments to privatize their water infrastructure. To make that prediction a reality, major financial interests are backing various government proposals that facilitate privatization and private investment bankers and other major financial players are increasingly interested in taking control of water and sewer services across the United States. Private equity vehicles are armed with more than $100 billion for infrastructure worldwide. Although most deals in the U.S. water utility market have involved existing private sector companies, a number of fund managers anticipate that the ongoing fiscal crisis will drive some governments to privatize their water infrastructure. To make that prediction a reality, major financial interests are backing various government proposals that facilitate privatization and private financing of public infrastructure.
Published on August 31, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Allentown is considering a risky and potentially very costly ploy to raise money to cover some of its pension liabilities. Mayor Ed Pawlowski has proposed a 50-year lease of the water and sewer systems that he hopes will produce $150 million to $200 million in upfront cash for the city.1 This money, however, is not cheap. Any upfront payment that the city receives is a costly loan that households and local businesses will repay through their water bills for decades. While Allentown's fiscal difficulties are certainly serious, the city must address the issue directly and avoid budget gimmicks like water privatization that will increase costs for generations of Allentonians.
Published on August 22, 2012
- Reports:
Investment bankers and other major financial players are increasingly interested in taking control of water and sewer services across the United States. Private equity vehicles are armed with more than $100 billion for infrastructure worldwide. Although most deals in the U.S. water utility market have involved existing private sector companies, a number of fund managers anticipate that the ongoing fiscal crisis will drive some governments to privatize their water infrastructure. To make that prediction a reality, major financial interests are backing various government proposals that facilitate privatization and private financing of public infrastructure.
Published on July 23, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Investment bankers and other major financial players are increasingly interested in taking control of water and sewer services across the United States. Private equity vehicles are armed with more than $100 billion for infrastructure worldwide. Although most deals in the U.S. water utility market have involved existing private sector companies, a number of fund managers anticipate that the ongoing fiscal crisis will drive some governments to privatize their water infrastructure. To make that prediction a reality, major financial interests are backing various government proposals that facilitate privatization and private financing of public infrastructure.
Published on July 12, 2012
- Reports:
Many communities across the country want local public control of their water and sewer services. Municipalization — the purchase of a privately owned system by a local government — is a fairly common occurrence, but for communities unfamiliar with it, the process could appear daunting. This guide provides an overview of the process and a number of logistical considerations involved in government purchases of privately owned water and sewer systems. Although the general procedure is similar, the specifics will vary by situation, partly because every state has its own legal and regulatory framework.
Published on June 27, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
All too often when an economist or banker looks out at an expanse of virgin forest or free-flowing river, she doesn’t see nature — she sees “natural capital.” This concept promotes the view that our natural resources should be attached a value and managed using market-based principles of supply and demand. It is the cornerstone of the “green economy” that many free-market proponents and market-oriented environmentalists assert will provide environmental sustainability.
Published on June 08, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Illinois communities need local, public control of their drinking water and wastewater systems to be able to ensure safe and affordable service.
Published on June 08, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
The State of California does not require companies to disclose if and where they are fracking, but industry docu- ments reveal that fracking has taken place in the counties of Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, Solano, Kern, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Monterey, and in the San Francisco Bay Delta, a source of drinking water for over 20 million Californians.
Published on June 06, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
To protect Maine’s groundwater and the general public’s best interest, Maine should hold its groundwater in the public trust.
Published on April 18, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
The oil and gas industry argues that the potential economic benefits of fracking justify the risks and costs to public health and the environment. But the industry has grossly overestimated the number of jobs that fracking would create, and has either ignored or dismissed the public costs of the practice.
Published on April 16, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Drilling and fracking a single shale well can produce millions of gallons of toxic wastewater and hundreds of tons of potentially radioactive solid waste. Disposal of these wastes poses serious environmental and public health risks.
Published on April 11, 2012
- Reports:
For the past 25 years, emissions trading, known more recently as "cap-and-trade," has been promoted as the best strategy for solving pollution problems. Based on an obscure economic theory that gained prominence in the 1960s at the University of Chicago, it was embraced by the Reagan administration as a replacement for regulating air emissions. Since that time, it has gained acceptance among environmental organizations and the largest environmental funders.
Published on March 07, 2012
- Fact Sheets:
Europe: New drilling and fracking techniques have been a boon for the oil and gas industry in the United States, making it possible for companies to extract large quantities of oil and gas from shales and other "tight" rock formations. However, shale development has been a nightmare for those exposed to the resulting pollution.
Published on March 07, 2012
- Reports:
Europe Report: Within the past decade, technological advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," have enabled the oil and gas industry to extract large quantities of oil and natural gas from shale formations in the United States. However, the practice has proven controversial. Pollution from modern drilling and fracking has caused widespread environmental and public health problems and created serious, long-term risks to underground water resources.
In this report, Food & Water Europe reviews the risks and costs of shale development that have been demonstrated in the United States, including economic costs that run counter to industry-backed claims about the economic benefits of the practice.
Published on March 07, 2012
- Reports:
Within the past decade, technological advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” have enabled the oil and gas industry to extract large quantities of oil and natural gas from shale formations in the United States. However, the practice has proven controversial. Pollution from modern drilling and fracking has caused widespread environ- mental and public health problems and created serious, long-term risks to underground water resources.
In this report, Food & Water Watch reviews the risks and costs of shale development that have been demonstrated in the United States, including economic costs that run counter to industry-backed claims about the economic benefits of the practice.
Food & Water Watch then summarizes the state of shale development in six selected countries: France, Bulgaria, Poland, South Africa, China and Argentina.
