Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-11-15-Speech-4-119"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2001-11-15"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Vote2
dcterms:Language	"el"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20011115.5.4-119"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2001-11-15-Speech-4-1202
lpv:speaker	lp:Konstantinos Alyssandrakis2
lpv:spokenAs	vice-chair; Delegation to the EU-Cyprus Joint Parliamentary Committee (1999-07-22--2002-01-14)3 substitute; Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, the Media and Sport (1999-07-21--2002-01-14)3 member; Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (1999-07-21--2002-01-14)3 member; EUL/NGL (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 unknown; Kommounistiko Komma Elladas (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 substitute; Temporary committee on human genetics and other new technologies in modern medicine (2000-12-13--2001-11-29)3
lpv:translated text	". The report fully endorses the Commission communication, the philosophy of which is to treat a natural resource, water, as a commodity and as a basis for implementing other negative sectoral policies, such as agricultural policy. We categorically oppose this philosophy and the negative proposals tabled in order to implement it. The report is geared towards "pricing policies to enhance the sustainability of water resources", which involve recovering the cost of water-related services and limiting the consumption and use of water by making it more expensive. At the same time, the report is gripped by the familiar "polluter pays" principle, resulting in new incentives and profits for business. The price – and it is a very high price – of the measures proposed on the hypocritical pretext of supposedly securing the sustainability of water resources, will be paid by the consumer, for which read farmers in southern Europe, given that, as both the Commission communication and the report state, it is they who consume the most water and pay less than the "real cost" for it. This policy will cause costs to rise and will wipe out even more small and medium-sized farms, which are already suffering the disastrous consequences of the common agricultural policy. Predictably, the report divides the cost into financial, environmental and resource costs and considers that only the financial cost has been calculated in the past. Thus, to refer to the report yet again, it states that the cost of building and operating dams on rivers due to over-extraction (by farmers) "may be passed on to the users" or, if water needs to be treated because it has been contaminated, for example by fertilisers, then farmers should pay the cost. We are opposed to any attempt to treat water as a commodity. We categorically refuse to allow the Commission to appoint itself as the guardian of water resources and, on the pretext of "encouraging sustainable water use" to add, yet again, grist to the mill of private interests and allow them to penetrate and operate in what is a purely public utility sector. The entire endeavour is nothing more than yet another chapter in the Community's catastrophic policy. It will work to the detriment of consumers and farmers and, at the same time, champion the promotion of other policies, such as the policy to wipe out the agricultural sector. Water resources cannot be protected and managed rationally using suppressive pricing policies and collection measures paid for by the consumer. Only a few large companies charging a high price for their "environmentally-friendly" profile stand to benefit from this policy, which gives them yet another opportunity to rake in vastly inflated profits."@en1

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