jugoso Posted January 19, 2013 #1 Share Posted January 19, 2013 A disturbing trend in the water sector is accelerating worldwide. The new “water barons” --- the Wall Street banks and elitist multibillionaires --- are buying up water all over the world at unprecedented pace. Familiar mega-banks and investing powerhouses such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Macquarie Bank, Barclays Bank, the Blackstone Group, Allianz, and HSBC Bank, among others, are consolidating their control over water. Wealthy tycoons such as T. Boone Pickens, former President George H.W. Bush and his family, Hong Kong’s Li Ka-shing, Philippines’ Manuel V. Pangilinan and other Filipino billionaires, and others are also buying thousands of acres of land with aquifers, lakes, water rights, water utilities, and shares in water engineering and technology companies all over the world. The second disturbing trend is that while the new water barons are buying up water all over the world, governments are moving fast to limit citizens’ ability to become water self-sufficient (as evidenced by the well-publicized Gary Harrington’s case in Oregon, in which the state criminalized the collection of rainwater in three ponds located on his private land, by convicting him on nine counts and sentencing him for 30 days in jail). Let’s put this criminalization in perspective: Billionaire T. Boone Pickens owned more water rights than any other individuals in America, with rights over enough of the Ogallala Aquifer to drain approximately 200,000 acre-feet (or 65 billion gallons of water) a year. But ordinary citizen Gary Harrington cannot collect rainwater runoff on 170 acres of his private land. It’s a strange New World Order in which multibillionaires and elitist banks can own aquifers and lakes, but ordinary citizens cannot even collect rainwater and snow runoff in their own backyards and private lands. http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/article38167.html http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/08/17/wri-launches-unprecendented-water-mapping-project/ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.United_Nations Posted January 19, 2013 #2 Share Posted January 19, 2013 Who would invest in them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freetoroam Posted January 19, 2013 #3 Share Posted January 19, 2013 read a few years back about the biggest natural under ground water reserve in Israel. Will need to hunt this story down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor T Posted January 25, 2013 #4 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Bingo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AsteroidX Posted January 25, 2013 #5 Share Posted January 25, 2013 This has been going on for decades now. Nothing new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpiritWriter Posted January 25, 2013 #6 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) A disturbing trend in the water sector is accelerating worldwide. The new “water barons” --- the Wall Street banks and elitist multibillionaires --- are buying up water all over the world at unprecedented pace. Familiar mega-banks and investing powerhouses such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Macquarie Bank, Barclays Bank, the Blackstone Group, Allianz, and HSBC Bank, among others, are consolidating their control over water. Wealthy tycoons such as T. Boone Pickens, former President George H.W. Bush and his family, Hong Kong’s Li Ka-shing, Philippines’ Manuel V. Pangilinan and other Filipino billionaires, and others are also buying thousands of acres of land with aquifers, lakes, water rights, water utilities, and shares in water engineering and technology companies all over the world. The second disturbing trend is that while the new water barons are buying up water all over the world, governments are moving fast to limit citizens’ ability to become water self-sufficient (as evidenced by the well-publicized Gary Harrington’s case in Oregon, in which the state criminalized the collection of rainwater in three ponds located on his private land, by convicting him on nine counts and sentencing him for 30 days in jail). Let’s put this criminalization in perspective: Billionaire T. Boone Pickens owned more water rights than any other individuals in America, with rights over enough of the Ogallala Aquifer to drain approximately 200,000 acre-feet (or 65 billion gallons of water) a year. But ordinary citizen Gary Harrington cannot collect rainwater runoff on 170 acres of his private land. It’s a strange New World Order in which multibillionaires and elitist banks can own aquifers and lakes, but ordinary citizens cannot even collect rainwater and snow runoff in their own backyards and private lands. http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/article38167.html http://www.environmentalleader.com/2011/08/17/wri-launches-unprecendented-water-mapping-project/ I live in a place that is said to have the best water in the world, and my water's paid for so I cant relate quite yet I was going to cancel but accidently posted.. anyway this sh makes me very mad Edited January 25, 2013 by SpiritWriter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jugoso Posted January 25, 2013 Author #7 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) This has been going on for decades now. Nothing new. Actually, if you read the article it talks about some things that are new and that have been happening over the last decade and are worth paying attention to IMO. in September 2003, Goldman Sachs partnered with one of the world’s largest private-equity firm Blackstone Group and Apollo Management to acquire Ondeo Nalco (a leading company in providing water-treatment and process chemicals and services, with more than 10,000 employees and operations in 130 countries) from French water corporation Suez S.A. for U.S.$4.2 billion. In March 2012, Goldman Sachs was eyeing Veolia’s UK water utility business, estimated at £1.2 billion, and in July it successfully bought Veolia Water, which serves 3.5 million people in southeastern England. Citigroup’s top economist Willem Buitler said in 2011 that the water market will soon be hotter the oil market: “Water as an asset class will, in my view, become eventually the single most important physical-commodity based asset class, dwarfing oil, copper, agricultural commodities and precious metals.” Specifically, a lucrative opportunity in water is in hydraulic fracturing (or fracking), as it generates massive demand for water and water services. Each oil well developed requires 3 to 5 million gallons of water, and 80% of this water cannot be reused because it’s three to 10 times saltier than seawater. Citigroup recommends water-rights owners sell water to fracking companies instead of to farmers because water for fracking can be sold for as much as $3,000 per acre-foot instead of only $50 per acre/foot to farmers. Other recent purchases worth noting: In summer 2011, the Hong Kong multibillionaire tycoon Li Ka-shing who owns Cheung Kong Infrastructure (CKI), bought Northumbrian Water, which serves 2.6 million people in northeastern England, for $3.9 billion (see this and this). CKI also sold Cambridge Water for £74 million to HSBC in 2011. Not satisfied with controlling the water sector, in 2010, CKI with a consortium bought EDF’s power networks in UK for £5.8 billion. Former President George H.W. Bush’s Family Bought 300,000 Acres on South America’s and World’s Largest Aquifer, Acuifero Guaraní There have also been major purchases and water-targeted investment funds created within the last five years. Some of the major players and funds are JPMorgan Chase, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse Water Index, HSBC Water, Waste, and Pollution Control Index, Merrill Lynch China Water Index, S&P Global Water Index, First Trust ISE Water Index Fund (FIW), International Securities Exchange’s ISE-B&S Water Index. If you think the clamour for oil is big, what´s going to happen when we are dealing with a resource that we truly can´t live without?? Edited January 25, 2013 by jugoso 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AsteroidX Posted January 25, 2013 #8 Share Posted January 25, 2013 I drive the I-5 corridor. You can see the direct effect of federal intervention into water rights for what us to be be productive green belt farms. Dams in my own state have decimated the Salmon population. Yes its a major deal. Fortunately we get enough here that water rights arent an issue. But I get it. Green yards and fountains abound in Las Vegas. That should be a crime unless its recycled bath water. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abramelin Posted January 25, 2013 #9 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Almost looks like the plot for the James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" (2008). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllJay Posted January 25, 2013 #10 Share Posted January 25, 2013 A disturbing trend in the water sector is accelerating worldwide. The new “water barons” --- the Wall Street banks and elitist multibillionaires --- are buying up water all over the world at unprecedented pace. Familiar mega-banks and investing powerhouses such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Macquarie Bank, Barclays Bank, the Blackstone Group, Allianz, and HSBC Bank, among others, are consolidating their control over water. Wealthy tycoons such as T. Boone Pickens, former President George H.W. Bush and his family, Hong Kong’s Li Ka-shing, Philippines’ Manuel V. Pangilinan and other Filipino billionaires, and others are also buying thousands of acres of land with aquifers, lakes, water rights, water utilities, and shares in water engineering and technology companies all over the world. The second disturbing trend is that while the new water barons are buying up water all over the world, governments are moving fast to limit citizens’ ability to become water self-sufficient (as evidenced by the well-publicized Gary Harrington’s case in Oregon, in which the state criminalized the collection of rainwater in three ponds located on his private land, by convicting him on nine counts and sentencing him for 30 days in jail). Let’s put this criminalization in perspective: Billionaire T. Boone Pickens owned more water rights than any other individuals in America, with rights over enough of the Ogallala Aquifer to drain approximately 200,000 acre-feet (or 65 billion gallons of water) a year. But ordinary citizen Gary Harrington cannot collect rainwater runoff on 170 acres of his private land. It’s a strange New World Order in which multibillionaires and elitist banks can own aquifers and lakes, but ordinary citizens cannot even collect rainwater and snow runoff in their own backyards and private lands. http://www.marketora...ticle38167.html http://www.environme...apping-project/ This really sickens my physically. MF-ing scum of the earth. Reminds me of when the World Bank forced the Bolivian government to privatize their water supply and hand it over to two American and French multinational corporations. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor Witness Posted January 26, 2013 #11 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) They're buying hydrogen and oxygen perhaps, hoping for a miracle catatyst. Edited January 26, 2013 by Raptor Witness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babe Ruth Posted January 26, 2013 #12 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I have long thought that there will come a time on this planet when water is far more valuable than oil. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
questionmark Posted January 26, 2013 #13 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I have long thought that there will come a time on this planet when water is far more valuable than oil. Yes, but that will make the elites look very dumb as that will be the time when water will be nationalized in most of the world. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babe Ruth Posted January 26, 2013 #14 Share Posted January 26, 2013 An interesting point Q. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug1029 Posted January 28, 2013 #15 Share Posted January 28, 2013 (edited) This has been going on for decades now. Nothing new. The Western United States are under a system of water law called "prior rights" in which all water in a stream was owned by the original homesteader. Over the years that homesteader and his heirs and assigns have sold off land and/or water rights to others. The water goes first to the oldest right, then to the next oldest right and so on until either everybody has water or there is none left. The system is great if you own the priority right, but it's terrible if it's a drought year and you own the last right. This system has been in place since statehood in most areas. The Spanish Land Grants in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and California had the prior right to all water on their lands. This right was recognized by the Treaty of Hidalgo. That system has dovetailed nicely with the modern version of prior rights. The big problem with western water rights over the last century stems from the use of the callendar year 1900 as the basis for allocating those rights. 1900 was a drought year, so that by the time every prior right takes its water out of the stream, there isn't any left for the late-comers. This problem is particularly acute on the Colorado River where there frequently wasn't enough water to honor treaty commitments to Mexico, which often got nothing. But Mexico solved the problem: it sold its water rights to Los Angeles. The fellow in Oregon ran into trouble because once water is in a container (A pond is a container.), it is owned by the person who has the prior rights. What he was doing is stealing water. If you want to use water before it becomes somebody's property, you need to grow something with it, like a crop, or water your cattle. As long as you don't put it in a container, nobody owns it. Prior rights even applies to the rainwater running off your roof: somebody else may own it. In the Eastern United States, water is allocated under "riparian rights," bascially, first-come-first served. In these areas, if there is water in the stream, you can use it until its gone. Edited January 28, 2013 by Doug1029 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leah G. Posted January 28, 2013 #16 Share Posted January 28, 2013 I drive the I-5 corridor. You can see the direct effect of federal intervention into water rights for what us to be be productive green belt farms. Dams in my own state have decimated the Salmon population. Yes its a major deal. Fortunately we get enough here that water rights arent an issue. But I get it. Green yards and fountains abound in Las Vegas. That should be a crime unless its recycled bath water. I hear ya, I've driven down I-5 it's decimated. Hard to believe a few years back it was healthy. Aren't they blaming that on a little fish? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightly Posted January 28, 2013 #17 Share Posted January 28, 2013 Water rights being monopolized by a few cooperative giants is a worrisome thing . So is the simultaneous trend to make water a Publicly "owned' and Managed resource .. because it will be a short step to "PRIVATIZATION" from there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rashore Posted January 29, 2013 #18 Share Posted January 29, 2013 There's more to Gary Harrington’s case than is stated. It has lasted for several years, with a lot of back and forth on Mr. Harrington's and the authorities parts. It has a lot to do with his building the ponds, and permits, and a ton of legal entanglement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
questionmark Posted January 29, 2013 #19 Share Posted January 29, 2013 There's more to Gary Harrington’s case than is stated. It has lasted for several years, with a lot of back and forth on Mr. Harrington's and the authorities parts. It has a lot to do with his building the ponds, and permits, and a ton of legal entanglement. And a whole lot with diverting stream flows, whereby he really got the book slapped on him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashotep Posted January 30, 2013 #20 Share Posted January 30, 2013 One day as population grows water will be the most fought over resource there is. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AsteroidX Posted January 30, 2013 #21 Share Posted January 30, 2013 (edited) I hear ya, I've driven down I-5 it's decimated. Hard to believe a few years back it was healthy. Aren't they blaming that on a little fish? yeah. found this. It would appear the Bill is still in commitee in the Senate and being amended in some way. This while one of the breadbaskets of the nation wasted away. Itll take years and years to regrow that land to what it used to be if this Bill ever passes. http://news.investor...nia-.htm?p=full http://thomas.loc.go...d112:h.r.01837: http://www.acwa.com/...on-senate-floor http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/asm/ab_0651-0700/ab_685_bill_20120925_chaptered.pdf http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/asm/ab_0651-0700/ab_685_bill_20120822_amended_sen_v93.pdf Edited January 30, 2013 by AsteroidX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug1029 Posted January 30, 2013 #22 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Water rights being monopolized by a few cooperative giants is a worrisome thing . So is the simultaneous trend to make water a Publicly "owned' and Managed resource .. because it will be a short step to "PRIVATIZATION" from there. Before anyone can monopolize water rights, somebody has to sell them those rights. Of course, if you offer enough cash... In the western US, water rights are already private and have always been so. I used to be a forester. On one of the properties I managed (State Section near Ward, Colorado), there was a small diversion dam. Years ago, it was blown up in a water war. The case eventually went to the Supreme Court that ruled that a water owner had the right to divert his water from one drainage to another. Some "private" rights are actually owned by public entities, like the City of Denver, City of Los Angeles and in some cases, the US government. From a legal standpoint, they are like any other private owner, with the same rights and responsibilites (except, they don't pay property tax on the water rights.). The City of Denver bought up water rights to South Park. That used to be a farming area. But with the water going to Denver, it has converted to ranching. Denver has a serious water crisis. People in that area are taking out thirty-year mortgages in areas that will run out of water before they pay off the mortgage (And the banks are writing those mortgages!). Home National Bank went bankrupt already because of that. I'd call that a failure to practice due diligence on everybody's part. T. Boone Pickes' attempt at building a pipeline so he could send Ogalala water to Texas failed when the court ruled that his "city" was, in fact, not a city at all, but a legal subterfuge he had created so he could use iminent domain to condemn a right-of-way. The case was not about water law, but rather about what constitutes a "city." Doug 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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