Substantive responses received by the Small Islands Voice global forum to the posting on ‘Exporting water – for whose benefit?’ adapted from an editorial in The Vincentian newspaper, 6 June 2003 http://www.sivglobal.org/?read=44  30 September 2003

From Shiu Raj, Fiji

I read your article titled ‘Exporting water - for whose benefit?’ with much interest.

Your point on extensive consultation with resource owners is a valid point. Indeed, no investor would like to run the risk of jeopardising their investment project for lack of consultations.  Quite often, foreign investors are not that familiar with the consultative process involving the traditional resource owners in the country of investment.  They are usually dependent on the advice they get from the person or group of people facilitating that investment.  The flaws of this advice are not discovered until the investors run in some sort of problems, and sometimes by then there is already immense speculation on all imaginable negative issues.

As a best practice, all investors, whether foreign or local, need to be very careful in their approach towards consultation with the resource owners, in particular when the project consists of utilisation of natural resources, such as bottling of spring water, mining of precious metals, etc.  In most of the small island nations, land, coastal areas and natural resource ownership has always been a delicate issue.  While some Governments have very well defined policies on these matters, there are others who are still struggling on how these issues could be satisfactorily addressed.  Some of these issues have had major impact on some small economies and have even impeded development in certain sectors and certain geographical areas.

One aspect which definitely stimulates progress in this area is when there is a set of success stories, and the traditional resource owners work on emulating this model.  Fiji has seen some examples of these and it has led to some interesting projects.  For example, one of Fiji's recent success stories is the export of bottled artesian water by a USA company.  In just few years, water as an exportable product has taken a place amongst the major exportable products from Fiji.  Given the success of this company, there are lots of resource owners who are now identifying good water sources and are looking for potential investment partners who could possibly work with them to make their initiatives a success.  There are at least two new commercial operations that have taken shape in Fiji following the success of the first company.

However, the discussion on the benefits that the traditional resource owners should get is ongoing.  There have been instances when projects do not even take-off due to the high expectation that some resources owners have on investment projects and its returns, and also the portion that they should get.  Quite often, the expectations are very much dictated by the ownership structure of the land and resources.  In Fiji, the traditional landowners have a Trust Board which acts on their behalf when it comes to negotiation on terms and conditions of the resource utilisation.  Discussions on resource utilisation that do not fall under the ambit of this Trust Board are held with other authorities such as the Land Commission or the Government.  These institutions have the responsibility to make commercial sense of the resource utilisation and also ensure sustainable development through optimum utilisation.  This has always been the most difficult task! In addition to that, these institutions also ensure that there is extensive consultation with the resource owners prior to finalising deals with investors.

Despite all these procedures, we sometimes do end up having situations where groups of resource owners end up being dissatisfied with the arrangements initially agreed upon.  This in my view is mainly due to the variances in expectations that the resource owners have.  In summary, while I can recommend that Saint Vincent consider having a consultative entity that

ensures that there is fair consideration given to the development objectives of the nation as well as the need for reasonable management of resources and appropriate returns on it, one should realise that sometimes consensus is difficult to achieve even if there has been extensive consultations.  Life is expectation based!

From Temakei Tebano, Fiji

Hi Small Islands Voice: I live on an atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and drinking

water is a number one concern. To cut the story short, please save your natural water because that is God's gift that your country may need in future. It is a priceless commodity and the money-greedy people just want to make more bucks out of it with false promises.  Keep your water and forget about job creation, etc. Keep out the great greedy liars. I am on your side, God bless.

From Salote Vaimoana Taukolo, Tonga

Thanks for generating this discussion - I am of the opinion that it depends on ‘how small an island’ you are talking about....but I am talking from a vulnerable small island country's perspective.

Water is a business that can be handled by locals - Fiji has done it with Fiji water (and they're not doing too badly either).

I think this is a business that can be handled locally, and as a joint-venture to ensure that the overseas partner is not only benefiting but most importantly the host country is benefiting as well.  I believe there is a need for national consultation not only at the public sector level but

also with NGOs and more importantly the villagers.

One does not have to look hard to find examples of companies abusing their rights - e.g. mass deforestation for timber in small countries such as Papua New Guinea which is destroying the eco system. A lot of issues need to be addressed other than the question of ownership, e.g. the quantities of water exported each year; what of the local people who have been benefiting at no cost for a long time now.  The information provided shows that the project has been in the pipeline for at least 5 years - has there ever been a feasible study done on this project - obviously not as the villagers and others involved would have been taken into consideration.

Any business (international or domestic) aims at maximising profit - but not at the expense of the locals - locals should be benefiting from such a venture.  Water is precious and so many small island states and 3rd world countries in the world - lack that very necessity.

There is also the question of  ‘rules of origin,’ I do not know what the country thinks about this.

Job creation if fine, injecting money into the economy is fine, but we have to consider ‘whom it will benefit the most’ and in the long run – what impacts will it have economically, socially and politically.

Substantive responses received by the Small Islands Voice global forum to the posting on ‘Success stories from Pacific islands about exporting water’ by S. Raj, S. Taukolo, T. Tebano http://www.sivglobal.org/?read=45  14^th October 2003

From Solomoni Biumaiono, Fiji

One most important aspect as mentioned by Shiu Raj was the different levels of expectation by resource owners.

This is the sticking point between investors and resources owners. Investors might want more from less while the resource owners want more and more from what they own.

One's practicing good business, while the other wants more money to improve lifestyle, satisfy education and live a comfortable life (we don’t blame them for that, it is their right as resource owners).

But, because one wants to play dirty while the other wants to enjoy, this does not usually work out. The resource owner might feel cheated, and the businessman might feel cheated also. Who wins when the resource owner moves in to set up roadblocks, start a strike, or sabotage facilities?

In fact, policies based on social economics can solve all this if everyone just plays fair - the businessman ensures he does have a social responsibility (be it money, environment or whatever) and the resource owners respect what is right.

It takes two to tango and when only one's dancing, the music would be of no use.

From Andy George, Kosrae

This forum is quite timely as Kosrae State in the Federated States of Micronesia is scrutinizing a foreign investment proposal for a water-bottling project proposed to be established here in Kosrae. Kosrae is a small volcanic island, only 42 sq. miles in size with a growing population. The water consumption and use at the local community level is increasing every year. I totally agree with Temaki Tebano's comments on this issue. Our water resource is a gift from God for our use, not for foreign investors who are constantly looking for opportunities to exploit our resources and make lots of money from them. Who will benefit from foreign investment project like this one in Kosrae in the long run? Local resource owners may benefit a little and so too our economy, but certainly foreign investors will be richer and much of the project income will be theirs to enjoy.

From Leban Gisawa, Papua New Guinea

Thank you for this very interesting story. I agree in totality especially in societies where ownership issues are strong and individuals have their own perceptions and expectations. This is a real issue and revolt is any moment.

From John Maneniaru, Solomon Islands

Thank you for the comments.

Water is plentiful on some of the islands. If it is commercialised with genuineness based on the fact that water is a precious gift from God and should be shared/accessed with all the brothers and sisters who are in need of it throughout the world then this should be in line with the love of God that gives it to us. In this regards, I pray that everyone on earth will have access to water. Therefore mass distribution of water to the whole world at minimal operational cost would be a great idea.

From Temakei Tebano, Fiji

Hi folks: Feedback from my Pacific island colleagues is very interesting and reflects exactly what is happening in their respective countries, I praise them for their true perspective.

My view in my earlier contribution goes beyond any long-term venture. I am talking about future generations of a country whether big or small. Water is the basic necessity of any living organism. One day this priceless gift will be put to good use. Now, hold for a moment and reflect what has been and is happening in Fiji where I currently work - water problem. People living on the outskirts of the major cities and towns are crying out for water, schools are closed, meetings postponed, farms and farmers are affected etc. etc. and even worse people living outside of the main island are using seawater for bathing. Water is being rationed and water cuts to the main centres are being considered. This happens within a short period of time, three months or so. How about drought for more than a year? Where are our water reserves that have been preserved for us for thousands (if not millions) of years. I have not heard of artisanal water (the very water from this country) being distributed free to the most affected and needy areas, why? in the name of business and greed. The water belongs to people.

Imagine St. Vincent experiencing a similar problem that lasts months and years. What the government might want to do is ask the company to distribute free water (impossible, maybe), or subsidise it (still people will have to buy it), or try and repossess the reserves which will take months to sort out in court, or buy desalinisation plants and water purifiers to meet the population demand.

Importing water from other countries is another option.  Unlike other renewable resources, water should be owned by the people and managed by government or government agencies. People continue to live and reproduce and use water at the mercy of global climate change of which long drought periods and other disasters are part. Money disappears, but people will be using and needing water everyday till the end of the world. Do not be blinded with money but think long and far beyond our present generation regarding this basic need and priceless gift - artisanal water. 

From Mali Voi, Samoa

Dear Friends,

I write this note in support of the articles from the Pacific folks in an actual story about one spring water source that had disappeared within my life time.

Before you hear the story, I wish to give the readers the location of my village, Pelagai, which is one of the 20 Keakalo language speaking villages of Marshall Lagoon District, Central Province, Papua New Guinea. Kupiano, the Administrative Centre or District Headquarters, is located at Marshall Lagoon, after which the District derives its name. There is a stretch of about 37 km of coastal plains just below the Owen Stanley Range...yes, very nice and beautiful beaches. A four-hour drive east of the Capital City of Port Moresby or a 12-hour boat ride would get you there. We lack water so we know the value of water towards life giving.

About 7 km inland of my village, there was once a water spring called ‘Nalu Golo’ (literally translated as ‘water mountain’) at the bottom of a small mountain ridge in what looked like a large hole. It used to bubble over into an adjacent marshland where there were many living species. This water spring was en route to an inland village called Ganimarupu. We used to visit mother's relatives walking by this water spring and stop and fetch water for our drinking. There were codes of conduct or rituals that one had to observe before water was fetched. Yes, one had to thank the spirit of the land by looking up to the sky, and down to the spring and seek permission to fetch water for drinking. Several water pailers or large coconut shells were always there. Bathing or washing in the spring water was strictly forbidden.

In 1968 the road to my home was constructed just above the spring water. A foreign company that constructed the road pitched their camp (the site can still be seen today) by the spring water and used it daily. In 1969 when my wife and I went home for vacation from our teaching posts at Goroka Teachers' College, Eastern Highlands Province, we drove past the spring water. I stopped the driver of the passenger motor vehicle to fetch some water to drink. I lamented over my childhood days to my wife, who is not from my language group and others on the vehicle. I told them a story about the place and that I noted the rate of its bubbles had slowed down. I decided that I would keep an observation diary on a five-year-periodic interval.

In 1974 (I was then posted to Port Moresby), I noted that there were no bubbles. In 1979 (still in Port Moresby), the big hole had almost dried up but reeds and grass were growing in and around the big hole. In 1984 (still in Port Moresby), it had completely dried up. In 1989, I was at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology in Lae, the second largest city in Papua New Guinea, I went home for vacation with my family and noted that a fire had burnt the reeds and grass including the vegetation around it the year before.

In 1993 before I came to Apia, Samoa, I noted that the hole had become an ordinary mountain side subjected to fires during the dry seasons, which can last up to 4 months at times in this part of the Central Province. I stopped keeping an observation diary.

Why an observation diary? In Keakalo philosophy, LAND is MOTHER, WATER is FATHER, and SKY is an enclosure of spiritual beings of the ancestors, the guardians of land and water, and both are under the sky. All the living things including humanity are controlled by the spirit of the dead. Today I am still wondering WHY the water spring disappeared.

I hope this story tells its story.

Substantive responses received by the Small Islands Voice global forum to the posting on ‘Island water resources are too precious to export’ by S. Biumaiono, A. George, J. Maneniaru, T. Tebano, http://www.sivglobal.org/?read=46  28 October 2003

From Morris Amos, Vanuatu

Dear Small Islands Voice,

Different islands (big/small) have their own traditional beliefs, views, purposes and perceptions about water in their community. For a small island, basically water is needed to sustain life, to drink, to cook, wash, relief from a disease and the necessities to live. Ownership of water belongs to the traditional owner of the land where water comes from or land where the water runs over. This is if we are talking about small islands where land is traditionally well shared and very well managed to support life of all people in the islands. The recent developments in islands and even countrywide are not able to undermine the underlying status of water.  It is still not clear who owns water in the perspectives of national government and other local governments, whether compensation is necessary, if water is a state property, and whether or not government should comply with international laws regarding water (communal and state entity). This however contradicts the beliefs of small islands where land ownership is traditional and belongs to indigenous people who rule over land, water and the sea. I suggest that the modern use and perspective of water should be based on small islands tradition and practices with regard to water but in a way to fit in the modern and developing way of living today.

From Pamela Baldwin

Just a comment about St. Vincent and the Grenadines.....one of the smaller, lesser known Grenadine islands is home to a 5 star resort with a sophisticated desalination plant....yet, the 750 residents suffered all season from a near drought.  It seems unconscionable to not donate, or share the resource with the poor locals.

From Solomoni Biumaiono, Fiji

I would care to contribute to Mr Maniaru's comments on water. I think he's tipping one end of the scale more heavily. Of course we all need water as it’s a basic need of a human being but what we are talking about here is water that is to be sold as a commercial entity. It’s like if your country can afford to sell bottled water then to be moralistic is a non issue unless the business is tainted by broken promises of the investors and the unlawful takeover of the resource owners.

If we can make out the distinct difference between the two scenarios, then we would narrow the problem down and perhaps look at the specific situation that needs to be dealt with.

We all want to be a developed nation like the rest of the western world but we have to weigh our options and act accordingly. If the said Caribbean country wants to export its water, then I think it should BUT provided that it does comply according to what they want.

From Moelani Jackson, Samoa

Hi Folks,

Water is life, therefore any question concerning water must be discussed with thought of giving life and not taking life neither financial gains.   Most of the small islands have clean natural water. Otherwise some islands like Samoa, there is abundance of water in some parts, while other parts are much drier and lack good water.   Therefore our government is still undergoing several projects to ensure that water reaches all parts of the Samoan islands.

Every Samoan understands and is aware of the water shortage in some of these areas where everyone with brains carries water when visiting the villages.   When we stay overnight we have to prepare ourselves to use as little water as possible, like they have special toilet facilities that take 4 litres of water rather than 4 gallons.  Be prepared to use 4 cups for your shower rather than showering under running water.  Drink more coconut juice than drinking from their reserved tanks.

Now with the 4 or 5 local companies selling spring waters it is very convenient to carry water to these areas and assure them of receiving safe drinking water. Therefore this idea of exporting water by St Vincent and Grenadines in the Caribbean may not necessarily be targeting a few rich people, but may help others have easy access to clean bottled water.  Let’s have more information from St Vincent.

Sell water and save a life

From Joan Robinson, Nevis

Until the 1990s, when wells were drilled, the island of Nevis depended heavily on cistern water.  Many households, including mine, still use cistern water.  I consider it superior, however, we do boil the drinking water.  I read an article in the American Airlines magazine about a company that is catching cistern water, purifying and bottling it for sale.  This could certainly be a practice that would ensure a water supply in areas that get some rain.

I, frankly, think the idea that people have to drink bottled water when many times the government water is fine is ridiculous.  I object to the many plastic bottles that are being used.  The manufacture of these bottles uses resources and their disposal is taking up landfill space.

From Manasa Sovaki, Fiji

Guys and ladies of course, The issue of artisanal water reserves caught my attention and I wonder if any of us (Pacific Island Countries) are looking after their water bodies such as wetlands. Almost all wetlands in our region are have been decimated or simply lost because a new road needs to be built, a new housing lot is more important, an industrial site should be built or we would loose the chance of employing hundreds of our people etc, etc. If we need to dump our rubbish we throw them in wetlands and so the natural reservoir that feeds the artisanal water reserves are taken over by ‘important needs’ and now we are crying out loud. Can we start mobilising our masses to at least have some sort of protection of these wetlands, let’s come up with a national wetland policy for a start.

From Tetoaiti Tabokai, Kiribati

I agree and disagree with the points made on water and how it should be distributed.  First,

water is a public good where rivers as a source are concerned.  Government pays money to maintain their flow and penalises those who tamper with the resource either through pollution or improper farming practices etc. Water found in wells in a particular spot naturally belongs to a family who owns it and therefore is something that should be managed properly as a certain number of people rely on it. 

Water as a shared commodity, exportable for use by others not having easy access to sources of water is also an obligatory and honourable thing to do.  If the exportable or the processed water is sold for commercial purposes then there should be a limit made on the amount or litres permitted, in other words a quota should be set so that the locals dependent on the water are first satisfied of their demand and need for water before extra could be sold to others.

Water used for commercial purposes should be sourced from rivers as opposed to wells, holes etc where property rights are concerned.

I live in a coral atoll where water is always a problem especially nowadays with increasing industrialisation and pollution.  I hope I have made some important comments.

From Gabriel Victor Titili, Fiji

Water is made of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. Ever since life exists man has used potable water as a basic medium for nourishing the human body or medium as a solvent. Additionally, man has used water to uniformly breakdown protein for easy digestion and absorption by the human body with proper application of fire.

In many traditional communities in the Ysabel Province of the Solomon Islands, water or streams have been used to demarcate land ownership between two tribes. Strictly speaking, no tribe owns land beyond or across a stream of water or river. In other words, a river or a stream could be regarded as a common property where both land owning units depend on for drinking water and gathering protein (fish and eels). Remember a river in Ysabel is made up of more than two small streams that converge into a valley. Therefore, those who live on the coast or along the river banks realise that the river has its source in the mountains, and any activities e.g. commercialisation, will need the consent of all landowning units from the mountains down the coast.

I am sympathetic with the fact that many people around the world are denied water, yet there is excess water directly flowing wastefully into the ocean in many islands of the Pacific. The idea about commercialising the commodity is good but it must not be at the expense of the landowning units.

Proper consultations must be carried out between the government and the landowning units and proper acquisition must be carried out before developments are implemented. There is no doubt that water does have a high value if exported and resource owners and the government can both benefit out of it. However, exploiting the resource without proper consultation can be a

nightmare. In any development, there must be a win-win situation between the landowning units and the investor.

Proper conservation strategies and policies for water sources in the Pacific are immediately required. Logging operations in many of the large islands, for example the Melanesian group of

islands, has taken away that very rainforest that retains moisture and prevents direct evaporation of water into the atmosphere. This is and has been a danger to sustainability of water in our islands. Failure to protect water sources will only encourage negative impacts to our own people.

Water is a precious commodity and it was given for a purpose. We islanders who are so fortunate to have access to it must protect it.

From Peter Wiese, Mexico

Bottling the scarce water may be an issue in some places, but probably it is a small volume. What burns me is to see thousands of gallons of water being sprayed on golf courses for the benefit of tourists while the working people do without any water for the better part of the day!

From: Peter K. William, Cook Islands 

Precious Water: sometimes one reads comments with interest and sadness, as how some of the authors perceive 'investors' or even entrepreneurs as evil or just money grabbing people.  My views are 'Get over it, and get in with the race'. Whilst we are entitled to personal views and freedom of speech and all that; I think one should also look at most scenarios with an open mind and at a bigger picture.

Though I am a proud Cook Islander and born in the Northern Group of Atolls, I have also been fortunate to have lived and worked in various parts of the globe during my military career.  In view of that, one specially appreciates the value of water and our need as well as how we take it for granted. In the Cooks, and I can speak for the atoll islands; all our water comes from rain collected in water tanks.  As much as people at home would like to moan and complain of the shortage of water; one has to just look around and see that knowing our only source of water is catching it from the sky, then we have to build bigger and better water tanks to meet our needs, be they private or commercial. It is simple and easy the construct.  On most of the atolls the government buildings i.e. schools, meeting houses, court houses and such like should all have large water tanks to meet the demand when private tanks 'may run out'.  I have seen so often, that with no rainfall for say 2 weeks, then water runs low.  Why? The local government and central government should be on top of this very valuable commodity; like I said before, we take it for granted. 

Today's message was about water being sold commercially.  If we are to take tourists as part of our way of life and earning etc; then we must also appreciate the fact that a good number of them would prefer bottled water for their own safety and peace of mind.  What is wrong with that?

Substantive responses received by the Small Islands Voice global forum to the posting on 'Supply local water needs before export' by P. Baldwin, J. Robinson, M. Sovaki, T. Tabokai, G. Titili, P. Wiese, P. Williams, http://www.sivglobal.org/?read=48  12 November 2003

From Edward Barrow

With respect to the debate surrounding the export of spring water in St. Vincent, to me the overarching question is one of cost-benefit analysis, and not one of the morality of exporting a resource. Hypothetically, if the water was used for irrigation and the crop is exported then the water has been indirectly exported. The core question is will the St. Vincent economy get sufficient benefits for the use of this natural resource in this manner. This will depend on the particulars of the contract negotiated which will need careful financial analysis to ascertain this.

From Charmaine Gomes, Trinidad and Tobago

The debate is very interesting. I do agree that national needs should be fulfilled before considering non-national needs.  We will all agree that water is indeed a scarce commodity and its scarceness is compounded by the fact that the infrastructure for generation and distribution requires serious attention.  For example, how much available water remains untapped because of poor infrastructure? How much of the tapped water is lost owing to leakage?  I wish to introduce another dimension to the discussion. If the bottled water is exported and the resources that are generated are enough to develop (where necessary) and improve the infrastructure for generation and distribution of water to nationals then it may not be a bad idea.  However, the resources thus generated should be used for this purpose.  So it is important to negotiate prices carefully.  The economists could do the calculations as to income that may be generated and needs of the communities.

From: Siliga Kofe     .vu]

The debate about a resource as critical to life as water must be one about governance. It is about whether the authority considers it important for its people to have access to potable water. The constraints against the provision of clean water are many and many have recited admirably the 'why not' catalogue. Lack of resources, technology, effective demand and other obstacles have been quoted as undermining access to water. I should like to suggest that the real problem is in the lack of will to make and implement a policy that makes water affordably available to all. The majority of politicians leading their countries are weak people without the where-with-all to make and see through important decisions like providing for the water needs of their people. Foreigners are not usurping our resources, we sold it to them. Our governments are not overwhelmed by foreign interests, they traded our sovereignty for pieces of silver that include watering golf courses in near desert environments, abundance of water for tourists amidst a populace basking in deadly aridity. There is no doubt about it, we are sovereign and the proof is that we are and for a lot of us, sovereign enough to reduce our own sovereignty.

 From Hirosy Santos, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia  

I have been to places in the world where water is not plentiful like ours. We are blessed by having so much water, for now that is. If we start exporting water we are not going to have enough for ourselves. These little island reservoirs are not big. We need to keep the reservoirs full from now on for the future generations. Exporting water is worse than exporting tuna or fish, at least the fish can reproduce, the water will not. Think seriously your life depends upon the water, you cannot buy a natural resource, once it is gone it is gone. Don't think water for money. Think water for life, yours and mine depend on it. 

From Peter E. Tarlow

I just read your issue on water conservation. I have a friend who is working on ways to cut water usage rapidly. Would you like me to ask him to contact you. I have been speaking in the Caribbean recently and will be speaking in Saipan this December, so I am becoming very aware of the issue of water and tourism.

Substantive responses received by the Small Islands Voice global forum to the posting on 'Think water for life' by C. Gomes, S. Kofe, H. Santos, M. Voi  http://www.sivglobal.org/?read=49  26 November 2003

From Alexander Hildebrand, India

Would it not be an attractive idea to export fancy bottles of seawater to wealthier countries as "luxury" items? It could be a way of attracting people's interest towards doing something about the island's unique vulnerabilities, and would also allow small islands to pay off the expensive

desalinisation equipments more rapidly? Big companies - like Coca Cola - could come into the picture and have their share too.  To me, exporting fresh water from an island is like selling off your blood: doctors will tell you, at most a litre a week, never beyond the re-filling capacity

From: Temakei Tebano, Fiji

Thanks a lot Small Islands Voice for posting us with many different views regarding the sale of water. Give us a few more months (if not years) when we will see what happens when a dry spell hits those islands selling water overseas. How much money would they spend in purifying and desalinating water for national consumption? And how much money would they need to spend to import water for national consumption? Watch out for the guys who appear to be very helpful while our water reservoirs are still full (if not half full), when the time comes they will take off and invest somewhere else leaving us with empty reservoirs, do you think they would care when we cry out for clean water, I do not think so. Better think long and far instead of short and close.

From Ernst Wilson, Haiti

Being from Haiti where water governance is as rare as water itself, I concur with the articulation and enunciation: ‘Foreigners do not take our resources, we choose to export and sell them’.