Plumbing the Rights, Part 1

For one in six people on the planet, finding water for drinking, cooking and washing is a daily struggle. As freshwater resources become ever scarcer, the UN has set a target to halve the number of people without enough water by 2015. How can this possibly be achieved?

Plumbing the Rights meets the people at the sharp end of the water crisis to find out their ideas on how to solve it.

The Alwar District in Rajasthan had become a desolate scene in the mid 1980's. A 'dark zone' where sand replaced the water and trees. The rivers had run dry. Then a group of volunteers lead by Rajendra Singh took a cue from an old man. They started building johads, earthen dams that impound rainwater. Five dead rivers have now come back to life. A modern day miracle using an ancient technique.

But the people of Lava Ka Baas have recently come up against the authorities for their latest Johad when they received a notice ordering its destruction. Earth Report visits the village to find out the latest developments.

All over India those who had abandoned their traditional water harvesting techniques are busy reviving them. The call coming from the grassroots is for decentralisation and local communities are demanding that their own efforts be supported.

In South Africa the New Water Act of 1998 acknowledges the human right to water. But in the townships around Durban, people are finding they are unable to pay their bills, and water cut-offs are becoming regular occurences. Along the Dolphin Coast a private company, Saur International has been granted a 30 year concession to run the water services. Earth Report finds the poorest of the poor returning to the polluted streams for water.

South African Minister Ronnie Kasrils is aiming to provide 6000 litres a month of free water to every household and yet at the same time opening the door to private multinationals to help mobilise investment. But can privatisation benefit the poor?

The water wars of the twenty first century may not be between nations after all - the water wars of today are internal, pitting communities against authorities as they begin to mobilise and demand a right to water.