By, David GreyOwl
Just recently, there was an article in the news about a town that had become yet another victim of polluted water. That town is, Corpus Christi, TX. According to the BBC, in an article dated, 16 Dec, 2016. the chemical spilled into the water in Corpus Christi is a chemical called, Indulin AA-86. The chemical is used in asphalt plants as an emulsifier. The chemical can burn human skin in concentrated form. The Mayor issued a ban on using the water for any purpose, and he was right in doing so.
When will we learn it is up to us to ensure clean water, a clean environment and clean air? What is it going to take before we say, "enough!" For a very long time, I have been saying 'water is the new oil.' What I mean by that is: Water will become the resource that will become one of the most expensive resources. At some point, if we do not stop the pollution, water will rival oil prices of the more expensive oil producing years.
We can do without oil, to a large extent, but we cannot do without water. The big producers of bottled water know this, and they are, and will take advantage of that very fact. If one is still not convinced water is the new oil, below is an example of what I am speaking of. On a normal day, bottled water is not usually that expensive for 24 bottles of water. During the course of our show, Native Opinion, my co-host and I have been doing a series on the Nestle company, and how that company is able to obtain millions of gallons of water at a very low cost and then sell the water to reap gross profits. Of course the business who sold the water to that particular individual made his or her money by inflating the price of the water, but look at who supplied the water to the business in the first place. The store is only a middle man, a part of the distribution chain, if you will. Inflated pricing should never happen during a water crisis, but again, water is the new oil. In immediate instances, like water crisis', we can't afford to boycott water companies, or the establishments that sell the water at inflated prices BUT, after the dust has settled, so to speak, we can take action to voice our concerns over water prices.
It is necessary for ALL of us to put an end to the pollution to begin with. That is how we stop the high prices of water. Putting an end to pollution is how we save and protect clean water. The Standing Rock reservation's protection of the water in ND is a good example of what needs to be done to protect our most vital life sustaining resource. With a new administration taking office in a couple of weeks, I fear we may have waited too long to do something about clean water becoming polluted. The new administration does not care about the value of clean water, sadly. The fact that water is becoming the newest hot commodity, more so than oil, that fact will become a reality for many of us, and that reality has yet to be fully realized by most.
