Water

This picture was sent to me via an email from Asheville PARC (People Advocating Real Conservancy).  It is a picture of the source of my drinking water.  I love my drinking water here in Asheville, even with the fluoride and chlorine in the water.  I think it tastes pretty good, and I know it is from the rain that falls locally, and there is no industrial plants near the source of our water, and there are no other cities using our water first.  After we are done with our water, it gets treated and then put into the French Broad river.  Newport and Knoxville are two cities who re-use our water via the French Broad river.  It is not as good for them as it is for us.

And today, Asheville's water is under threat.  A local Representative is threatening to privatize our water system, and rumor has it that the water is needed in the eastern part of the state for fracking.  I will fight this.

Here is the email message I got about this:

Control of Asheville's water is under threat!

A legislative committee in Raleigh is considering forcing the City of Asheville to transfer control of its water supply to an outside agency.

While the Asheville system serves customers throughout Buncombe County, the majority of customers live in Asheville.

Still, we may find ourselves at the mercy of people who did not pay for the system, we cannot vote for or against, or hire or fire.

At the same time, in a separate committee, a majority of these same legislators are working on a process that could lead to privatization of water utilities all over the state.

We are told the two are unrelated...

The first meeting of the committee eyeing Asheville's water is in Raleigh on Monday, Jan. 23rd.

The second will be in Asheville sometime in late February.

There will be a third and a fourth, and then the committee may put forward legislation that takes away control of our water and gives it to someone else.

This is wrong, and it must not be allowed.

Visit www.ashevillewater.blogspot.com for more information and ways to get involved.

You can listen to the first meeting on Jan. 23rd starting at 2 pm, by going to the City of Asheville website, www.ashevillenc.gov, and clicking on the "NCLEG.NET" button.