by Tim Williams

Created on: March 21, 2009

Water! The most precious of all things Through-out history wars have been fought over the right to claim water rights. Like a nations finances, governments ability to control the availability of water is the other source in determining the destiny of populations. Transparency and effective governance of water is the prerequisite for all human and animal development. It also ensures environmental stability. Yet we especially here in the United States take the supply of readily available access of water for granted. We waste it, we squander it, we horde it, we pollute it, and generally abuse the supply we have.

Where- ever there is power to control, corruption of those in control is rampant in governments through-out the world. These facts will emphasize the scope of the monumental disaster we have taking place right now.

1. More than 1 billion people live without safe drinking water, more than 2.6 billion without adequate sanitation. Unclean water and poor sanitation have claimed more lives over the past century than any other cause. Corruption is a major roadblock to solving this human development crisis. A study of 21 water utilities in Africa, revealed that nearly two thirds of their operating costs were due to corruption.
2. Water is indispensable for all food production. Irrigated agriculture produces 40% of the world's food on only 17% of the agricultural land. An increa se in world food production will come through irrigation. Changing from rain-fed agriculture to man managed irrigation requires an impeccable governance system, with maximum transparency and accountability to all agents.
3. Hydropower is a vital source of energy, but as in all large infrastructure projects significant corruption can occur from the policy and planning stage through construction to the actual electricity production. Corruption invariably reduces the benefits from a project while at the same time increasing the human, economic and ecological damages.
4. Widespread overuse of water, often aggravated by corruption, is endangering the balance of ecosystems around the world, intensifying local water shortages and increasing the risks of poverty and conflict that come with it.
5.The corruption risks encountered in the water sector are as imminent as they are diverse. They range from petty bribery in water delivery to procurement related looting from covering up industrial pollution to manipulation and distortion of fundamental water management and allocation policies. This makes

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