The Water Bottle Battle – Whose Water Is It?

If no-one owns water, why do we get so worked up when it is “given away”?

This paper will consider the question of who owns fresh water, focusing on the implications the answer might have on water managers and users, using recent debates around topics such as water bottling as the context. For example, if no-one owns water, then on what basis could anyone purport to charge for its taking and use? On the other hand, if water is a collective resource, should it be central government or regional councils who are empowered to charge for water takes, perhaps by analogy to the royalty regimes that are commonplace in other extractive industries? Or would iwi have the best claim to ownership?

A further oar in the water is Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Act, which declares the Whanganui River to be a legal person with all the rights, powers, duties, and liabilities of a legal person. The Act indicates it does not create or affect any right to or interest in water, but could that change in the future and what if it does? Is this Act a high water mark or a sign of things to come? Does it demonstrate that our view of water is out of step with our cultural heritage?

Whatever the answer to these questions, this paper will examine whether our water management regime appropriately balances the interests of all people in fresh water, what the purpose of any charging regime for water takes would be, and whether charging might have unintended consequences.