via AlterNet:
Small Town Overthrows Corporate Giant for Control of Water
By Wenonah Hauter,
Food & Water Watch. Posted June 5, 2008.
The people of Felton, California learned that they had successfully wrested control of their water from the clutches of a giant corporation.The people of Felton, California learned that they had successfully wrested control of their water from the clutches of a giant corporation on Friday, May 30, 2008.
Many of the 3,000 adult residents of the Felton Water District had been organizing for nearly six years to buy the community's water system from California American Water. Cal-Am is a subsidiary of American Water, which, despite an ongoing sell-off, remains under the ownership of German multinational energy and water titan RWE.
Surprisingly, less than a week before an eminent domain trial to decide the value of the water system, the announcement came that the San Lorenzo Valley Water District would pay Cal-Am $10.5 million in cash for the system. Of course, Cal-Am went for the deal to settle the eminent domain suit against it and avoid a jury trial, said Jim Mosher, who heads up the legal committee for Felton FLOW -- Friends of Locally Owned Water.
This is a great victory for the citizens of Felton and should inspire other communities to challenge private water utilities that are extorting huge, unjustified rate increases and failing to protect sensitive watershed properties. The SLV Water District has done an excellent job representing us and we look forward to having them manage the Felton water system."
In addition, the agreement states that Cal-Am will donate the 250 acres of forested watershed land in hopes of getting a tax break. Mosher questions whether the land transfer is a donation, however, since it appears to be an integral part of the deal and the price.
How it all happenedIn 2001, American Water purchased Felton's water system, which has been privately owned since the late 1800s, as part of its larger acquisition of Citizen's Utilities. Shortly after that, Essen-based RWE gobbled up American Water.
The trouble started in November 2002 when California American Water ignited furor in the Felton community, nestled amongst coastal redwood trees, with a 74 percent rate hike. In response, the Friends of Locally Owned Water was born and flew into action. FLOW fought to reduce the amount of the rate hike, urged Santa Cruz County to create a public agency to control the water system and opposed the company's plan to merge the Felton and Monterey water districts. .......(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://www.alternet.org/water/87182/
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