I am proud to represent the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter in standing up for our public water systems. Recognizing that water is basic to all life, we seek to ensure sustainability of water resources and natural ecosystems, to protect water quality, to promote environmental justice and democratic decision-making, and to prevent domination of water resources and municipal water/sewer services by transnational corporations and other powerful private interests. That’s why we support the Public Water Works! Campaign.
Today our water systems are at a critical juncture. As vital and high operating as they are, lack of funding is threatening the quality and reliability of those systems to meet the needs of growing urban areas. We ask public officials to enact and enforce national and local laws, regulations and pricing to ensure sufficient quantities of safe and affordable drinking water for all inhabitants and to ensure the health of the planet’s ecological systems. Adequate national and sub-national funding should be made available to rehabilitate and maintain public water and sanitation infrastructures in order to provide access to clean and affordable drinking water, with incentives to promote the conservation of water, minimize wasteful uses of water, and prevent sprawl.
We all drink water. There is no truer public interest to serve than its provision. Meeting the total short- and long-term needs of our public water systems is ambitious, but possible. Together, public officials at all levels of government and the communities they serve can take steps to engender the public climate and build the political will necessary to guarantee water systems for generations to come. Indeed the nation’s future prosperity and public health depend on it. And to this end, we know public, democratically-governed, water systems work best.