Why should you care about PPPs? 

Communities should be empowered to make decisions that work best for them.  The Province has no business telling us how to spend our taxes, and certainly has no right to force us to hand over our hard-earned money to the private sector.  PPPs are not a ‘one size fits all solution’ and communities should not be forced to use them.  Instead, the Provincial Government should be providing us with the research and resources to help us make the very best decision for our local area. 

Furthermore, the CRD has all the brainpower and technology we need to operate a new sewage system - and we have ready access to talented local companies that can be called upon to provide additional inputs on a contract basis.

Water and wastewater should never be privatized.  The private sector should never be allowed to have their hand on the tap that controls the flow of water into our homes and businesses, and the flow of wastewater out.  Water is a common resource, not a commodity. To quote the Council of Canadians: The commodification of water is wrong - ethically, environmentally, and socially. It ensures decisions centre on commercial, not environmental or social, considerations. The principles become those of scarcity and profit maximization rather than conservation or long-term sustainability. Increased profits become dependent on increased consumption rather than conservation.

Government’s primary job is to look after the common good, not the interests of the private sector. The common good is a concept that refers to specific “goods” that are shared and beneficial for all (or most) members of a given community. At its most fundamental, the idea of the “common good” refers to the basic requirements for staying alive: food, water, and shelter.

Have other reasons to care? Submit them here.