With so many urgent social justice issues facing us today, rising inequality, attacks on healthcare, threats to reproductive rights, I'm often asked why I chose water as the central theme of my novel. At first, I wasn't sure how to answer. Perhaps it began with my water bill--$500 seems outrageous for three people. But deeper than cost, there's a growing unease in our household. Ray only drinks bottled water, paying 2000 times more than if he drank it from a tap. I filter mine through a PUR system, even though officials say there's no lead risk because our home has plastic pipes. Still, I hesitate to trust what comes out of the tap.
That distrust was reinforced last week when I spoke with a man who manages the water system for a medium-sized town just north of Portland. To my surprise, he said he doesn't drink Bull Run water. I was always told Portland had one of the cleanest water sources in the country. The repeated detection of Cryptosporidium, a parasite that is particularly dangerous to those with compromised immune systems, casts a shadow over our so-called "pristine" water. Knowing that there are rusting pipes in various locations throughout the city added to my anxiety, as does the industrial waste and auto runoffs that pollute the water people swim in. Officials insist our water is safe--for most people.
But does that include me as I age and my immune system weakens? The long-delayed filtration project, intended to address this issue, is now postponed until at least 2027. It faces significant cost overruns that are likely to affect me through added taxes or higher water rates. Seniors on fixed incomes and low-income households will continue to be hit the hardest.
Reading Blue Gold by Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke was a turning point. The book revealed how multinational corporations met behind closed doors and declared that water should no longer be a basic right, but a commodity. They pushed to privatize public systems, bottle and sell water for profit, and even trade water futures on the Stock Market.
That knowledge was chilling. As I dug deeper, I uncovered stories of energy companies acquiring water rights, of family farmers being pushed off their land, and of groundwater being diverted to enrich already wealthy investors. Across the globe, millions are displaced or left to suffer due to water scarcity. In the Middle East, water has become a weapon that's used to control, subjugate, and destroy.
Drinking water is essential for survival. It comprises approximately 60% of the human body. We can survive only a few days without it. Despite knowing this, we've allowed greed to dictate access to this most essential resource. I believe, fiercely, that clean, accessible water is a human right.
That belief drove me to write The Water Factor, a fact-based thriller that aims to wake readers up. In the first chapter, I imagined a community forced to rely on trucked-in water. I assumed it was fiction-until I discovered it's a reality in many places, even in water-rich states like Hawaii. The more I researched, the more plausible and alarming my plot became.
Learning about water isn't easy. Utilities often dodge transparency laws. But there are nonprofits in most communities working to uncover the truth. I urge you: read The Water Factor, then dig into how your own water system works. Ask questions. Demand transparency. Because the right to water may be slipping through our fingers, and we need to act before it's too late.
Cool Water was a Cowboy Song written by Bob Nolan in 1924 that became popular during the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. I used to hear it occasionally when I was a kid. The song was originally posted on protestsonglyrics.net. It goes like this. . .
All day I've faced a barren waste,
without the taste of water, cool water.
Old Dan and I with throats burnt dry,
And souls that cry for water,
Cool, clear water.
(CHORUS:)
Keep a-movin', Dan,
Don't you listen to him, Dan,
He's a devil not a man,
And he spreads the burning sand with water. Dan, can you see that big green tree,
Where the water's running free,
And it's waiting there for me,
And you?
The nights are cool and I'm a fool,
Each star's a pool of water, cool water.
But with the dawn, I'll wake and yawn,
And carry on to water,
Cool, clear water.
(CHORUS)
The shadows sway and seem to say,
"Tonight we pray for water,
Cool water."
And way up there He'll hear our prayer,
And show us where there's water,
Cool, clear water.
(CHORUS)
Dan's feet are sore, he's yearning for,
Just one thing more than water,
Cool water.
Like me, I guess, he'd like to rest,
Where there's no quest for water,
Cool, clear water.
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The Water Factor is a Firebird International Award winner for best dystopian novel and a Literary Titan recipient for best thriller. Though fun to read, it carries a severe message about water scarcity. It is available in ebook, paperback, and audio formats. It can be purchased on AMAZON, Barnes & Noble, Powell's Books, and as an audiobook on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. Ask your bookstore to order a copy from Ingram or buy from Annie Bloom's Books in Multnomah Village.
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