Ayden Flores

Period 3

Should individuals or Corporations have the right to own or control

water?
Everything on earth needs water to live, humans can only live for three days without water and plants and
animals dont last very long without water either. Water is a human right and shouldnt be controlled by individuals or
corporations. It shouldnt be controlled because access to clean water shouldnt be about who can afford it and who
cant. It should be about giving people clean water so that people wont get sick and die because there shouldnt be a
single person in the united states or in the world without clean water. Bottled water is a big situation when it comes to
Corporations and water. It means huge profits for them and while they're focused on getting profits from bottled water
they are not paying attention to and giving less support to our public water systems. If they are not paying attention to
our public water systems than whats the purpose of giving them the ability to control water. One other problem that
comes out of bottled water, is that multinational Corporations such as, Coca-Cola and Nestle Waters use plastic
bottles that will eventually end up in landfills and in the ocean as pollution. We shouldnt rely on these Corporations to
give us something so important, we should be the ones who get to control this life giving resource.
The first reason that we shouldnt let Corporations take control of water is because all they care about are
the profits. They are only in it for the money and are looking for every opportunity in the world to turn the misery of
regions without clean water into profits for their executives and stockholders. Instead of enhancing conservation
efforts, helping people in need of clean water and raising public awareness, governments are giving our water to
private individuals and corporations, making them solve an issue that involves every human on the planet but since it
involves nearly everyone, shouldnt we all be taking part in this global issue? The answer is yes, but some people
think that even though water is a right that Corporations and individuals are reliable and are able to give out clean
and accessible water to the people that need it the most. However, this has proven not to be the case. Most
Corporations and Companies in the United States are usually more interested in their profits than the needs of
individuals all around the world. Also it is very common that major Corporations have the tendency to increase rates
up to three times in their profit interests. Many people are unable to pay that much for water and end up moving
somewhere else, which is a violation to the right of water because people are leaving because they cant afford water.
They cant afford to pay for something that they need in order to live because of selfish Corporations, which is really
cruel to the people.
The next and final reason that Corporations and individuals shouldnt control our water is that it lowers the
water quality which means that the water could contain bacteria which could lead to disease, which possibly can
ultimately lead to death. Lots of people argue that just because water is handled by these big Corporations and
individuals with lots of money that they supply the best water there is. However though, this is not very true with major
Corporations. There are multiple occasions where in which Corporations handling the supply of water lead to serious
and chaotic disasters. Public health is generally more at risk with private individuals and major corporations. The
National Association of Water Companies (NAWC) requests that all federal regulations are to be based on sound
cost-benefit analysis (oppose water privatization 1). This means that the health of people are compromised for the
sake of higher profits. That is wrong in many ways and is violating the right to water and the right to the people.
Corporations shouldnt have to charge more for the same amount of water, just to get more money. It is wrong and
making people spend more money on a valuable resource to life. Corporations are prioritizing money over the health
of people and they need to be taken out of control if they are willing to sacrifice the health of people around the world
in order for more money to be made.
Individuals and Corporations should not have the right to control water because water is a human right and
should not be taken for granted. It should not be used for ones advantage of making money, especially if its putting
people's health at risk. I think that I look at it from this perspective is because I dont want to see anymore of people's
lives put at risk and to see they are put at risk for money which is silly. It tells you a lot about our society today and I
think that people all around the world should have access to clean water and should be able to consume it without
payment because water is a human right because it's what keeps us alive and is a very valuable resource to every
living organism on the planet.

Works Cited
Corporate control of water. Food and water watch 2015. 1616 P Street, NW,

Ayden Flores
Period 3
Washington, DC 20036 -Food and water watch headquarters.
<https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/problems/corporate-control-water>

Debate:Water privatization. 30 August, 2011.

<http://www.debatepedia.org/en/index.php/Debate:_Water_privatization#Should_water_be_con
sidered_a_public_good_and_not_be_privatized.3F>

Top 10 Reasons to Oppose Water Privatization. California Office:1615 Broadway, 9th

Floor, Oakland, CA 94612. <https://www.citizen.org/documents/Top10ReasonsToOpposeWaterPrivatization.pdf>