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It must be emphasised that opinions stated in published essays do not necessarily reflect those of Fair Water Use.
I H Douglas: The hands on the tap*
*Originally published by ABC News On-line: May 2010
A question:
What is supplied "the way nature intended it to be", "to keep your family hydrated"; "keeps hardworking Australians hydrated" and is "the affordable hydration solution for your workplace"?
The answer is not Neverfail Springwater, as Coca-Cola Amatil would have you believe. Neither is it Mount Franklin, Pump, Pumped, Vitamin Water, Peat Ridge Springs, Smart Water, Propel Mind, or Propel Body; not even SoBe Lifewater with (or without) Purevia, or any of the myriad, slickly marketed brands produced by Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and their cohorts.
Initially marketed as convenience drinks, bottled water products are now being promoted as the solution to concerns regarding the availability and security of safe drinking water. Both Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are making great efforts to convince the public that they have recently developed a profound sense of corporate responsibility in that regard.
J E Caldecott: South Australia's Water and Environmental Disaster
5th November 2009
The Lower Lakes have been a natural part of the River Murray for thousands of years. Evaporation from these Lakes is part of the natural water cycle. Water is not a resource or commodity, but a natural resource to be nurtured and respected. The water cycle is too complex for the market to manage as it is primarily motivated by profit. The continuing construction of blocking dams, weirs and regulators is destroying our environmental inheritance, the public amenity and utility of our water ways. It is time, once and for all, we stood together to demand a fair share of the River Murray for South Australia under all climate scenarios. We don't need increased obstruction to natural flows; we need better management and prioritisation of the entire Murray-Darling Basin (MDB).
I H Douglas: Desperately seeking: Missing Murray inflows*
* Published by ABC News On-line: January 2010
7th January 2010
Recent heavy rains in Eastern Australia have provided an abundance of photo opportunities for national and overseas media: large areas of the northern Murray-Darling Basin submerged by floodwaters; the ongoing inundations cutting-off several towns and countless farming properties.
Information provided by the Bureau of Meteorology indicates that widespread heavy rainfall in northern NSW and Queensland has resulted in gaugings of between 100 and 200mm for December 2009 in much of the northern Basin.
In addition to these well above average December falls, the highest on record in some parts, the first days of the New Year have seen many areas in the Darling catchment receive precipitation well over 100mm - and the rain is still falling.
Sorry to interrupt the high five sessions on our world-beating economic performance, but aren’t we forgetting something? Ask an economist and they’ll say no; ask a realist and they’ll tell you that we’ve forgotten that water underpins everything.
How much food can our farmers produce without water? How many ASX listed companies currently are significantly overvalued because of their reliance on the availability of cheap water to generate current profits?
Advocating environmentally-responsible use of Murray-Darling water
Fair Water Use (Australia) is a lobby group formed by everyday Australians who share the vision of a revived Murray-Darling basin and the sustainable environmental, community and economic benefits that would flow from its recovery.
Op-Ed Articles 
