The English Water Sector: 20 years on from Privatisation

When

to

Where

Speaker(s)

Chad Staddon
Senior Lecturer in Geog., Dept Geog. and Environmental Mgm’t, Chair of the “Bristol Group for Water Research” and “Rural Sustainability” research groups and Regional Committee Member for the Consumer Council for Water, Central Region

The “Big Bang” privatization of water services provision in England and Wales in 1990 was heralded by some as a triumph of Thatcherite free market ideology.  20 years on that portrayal seems somewhat hyperbolic to say the least.  In this presentation I will chart the major waypoints in the evolution of the English water sector since 1989. I will also discuss some of the key challenges currently facing us, including adapting to climate change, the securitization of water services through mergers and acquisition activity in the last decade, creeping privatization of more nooks and crannies of the sector and the emergence of water poverty in England.  I also discuss some of the changes forced on the English water sector by the EC Water Framework Directive (2000).

Date:Monday, April 6, 2009
Time:Noon to 1:30

All seminars and events are held at the Sol Resnick Conference Room, Water Resources Research Center, 350 N. Campbell Ave

If you are driving to Tucson via I-10 please note the following:
All exits within the city of Tucson are closed due to construction.
Driving East I-10: The last open exit north of Tucson is Prince Road. Exit and take the frontage road to Speedway, east to Campbell Ave, South to WRRC
Driving West I-10: The last open exit south of Tucson is Kino Pkwy. Exit and drive north to WRRC.