Should Canada allow Should Canada allow corporations to sell fresh corporations to sell fresh water in bulk to foreign water in bulk to foreign

countries.countries.

Difference between water export Difference between water export and bulk water export.and bulk water export.

Bulk water exportBulk water export Large scale removalLarge scale removal By canals, tanker By canals, tanker

ships or trucks, or ships or trucks, or pipelines.pipelines.

Exported from basin Exported from basin of originof origin

Water exportWater export Smaller scaleSmaller scale In bottlesIn bottles

NAWAPA and GRAND Canal Schemes

Water Diversions in the Great Lakes

Supertanker

Bottled water

Arguments against water exportsArguments against water exports

Environmental consequences.Environmental consequences. Economic unfeasibility.Economic unfeasibility. NAFTANAFTA Water exports will not bring water to those who

need it most Water is not completely renewable

Environmental consequences

Disrupts ecosystems Damages natural habitats and reduces

biodiversity Dries up aquifers and underground water

systems Interrupts river flows, causing widespread

flooding Transport of water causes carbon dioxide

emissions Bottling water causes pollution

Water level reduction

Destruction of ecosystems

Pollution due to the bottling of water

Economic Unfeasibility

Large scale diversions by canals and aqueducts:

Enormous initial investment Huge operating costs

Long distance shipping by supertanker: Expensive: costs depend on price of oil Inefficient: problem of cargo for returning trip New desalination technology is considerably

cheaper

NAWAPA and GRAND Canal Schemes

Economic cost of shipping water by tanker

Desalination plant

Bottled water

Only water export method that has been taking off

1970: 1 billion liters of bottled water sold 2000: 84 billion liters of bottled water sold ¼ of all bottled water produced is exported It is the first step in the process of

commoditization of water Approximately 1.5 million barrels of oil are used

to make plastic water bottles Transporting these bottles burns even more oil.

NAFTA

NAFTA

Sale of a single sip of Canadian water could “open the floodgates” to water corporations

NAFTA implies: One commercial transaction in any volume of

bulk water will legally change all Canadian water from “a public good” to a “commodity”

Once any volume of water is allowed to leave Canada in bulk for the US, that volume can never be reduced unless domestic consumption is also reduced

Water exports will not bring water to those who need it most

If water is exported in bulk those who really need the water would be the least likely to receive it

Water hauled over long distances by corporate-owned tankers would be available only to the wealthy because the motive for export is profit

It would reduce the urgency and political pressure to find real, sustainable, and equitable solutions to water problems in water-scarce countries

Water is not completely renewable

Only 1 % of water in the Great Lakes is replaced through the natural water cycle

99 per cent is fossil water, from the melting of glaciers about twelve thousand years ago

Resources need to replenish themselves Water flowing into the ocean is part of a natural

cycle that has balanced the earth’s ecosystems for millennia

Conclusion

Canada should not allow corporations to sell water to foreign countries because of the disastrous consequences it would have for the environment and the availability of more convenient long term solutions like water desalination and better conservation.