Water Capitalism Capitalist Thought: Studies in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics Series Editor: Edward W Younkins, Wheeling Jesuit University Mission Statement This book series is devoted to studying the foundations of capitalism from a number of academic disciplines including, but not limited to, philosophy, political science, economics, law, literature, and history Recognizing the expansion of the boundaries of economics, this series particularly welcomes proposals for monographs and edited collections that focus on topics from transdisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary perspectives Lexington Books will consider a wide range of conceptual, empirical, and methodological submissions, Works in this series will tend to synthesize and integrate knowledge and to build bridges within and between disciplines They will be of vital concern to academicians, business people, and others in the debate about the proper role of capitalism, business, and business people in economic society Advisory Board Doug Bandow, Tibor R Machan, Walter Block, Michael Novak, Douglas J Den Uyl, James Otteson, Richard M Ebeling, Douglas B Rasmussen, Mimi Gladstein, Chris Matthew Sciabarra, Samuel Gregg, Aeon J Skoble, Stephen Hicks, C Bradley Thompson, Steven Horwitz, Thomas E Woods, Stephan Kinsella Titles in the Series Economic Morality: Ancient to Modern Readings, by Henry C Clark and Eric Allison The Ontology and Function of Money: The Philosophical Fundamentals of Monetary Institutions, by Leonidas Zelmanovitz Andrew Carnegie: An Economic Biography, by Samuel Bostaph Water Capitalism: The Case of Privatizing Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, and Aquifers, by Walter E Block and Peter Lothian Nelson Water Capitalism The Case of Privatizing Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, and Aquifers Walter E Block and Peter Lothian Nelson LEXINGTON BOOKS Lanham • Boulder • New York • London Published by Lexington Books An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowman.com Unit A, Whitacre Mews, 26-34 Stannary Street, London SE11 4AB Copyright © 2015 by Lexington Books All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Block, Walter, 1941- author Water capitalism : the case for privatizing oceans, rivers, lakes, and aquifers / Walter E Block and Peter L Nelson pages cm (Capitalist thought: studies in philosophy, politics, and economics) Includes bibliographical references and index ISBN 978-1-4985-1880-2 (cloth : alk paper) ISBN 978-1-4985-1881-9 (electronic) Water-supply Water rights Privatization I Nelson, Peter L (Peter Lothian), 1946- author II Title III Series: Capitalist thought: studies in philosophy, politics, and economics HD1691.B575 2015 333.91 dc23 2015032605 TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 Printed in the United States of America Prior to the writing of histories, from before the dawn of civilization, the Homers of earth braved the elements to reach new vistas This book is dedicated to those maniacal mariners who have revolutionized society in ways that the petrified toe-dippers of the world never believed possible May ensuing adventurers continue that quest for excellence! Maps Mississippi River Watershed Central California Watersheds Note: The Tule/Kern Watershed (including Fresno and Bakersfield) does not drain to the ocean Gulf of Aden and Environs R Racanelli, P J., , , Rahm, Robert, , Rand, Ayn, , , , , Rand Corp., , Raskin, Max, , rational voter, RBC Radio, , Reclamation District 10, Red Dragon, Red Sea, Redding, California, refuse collection, Regan, Shawn, , Regis, Ed., , Reichert, William O., , Reno, William, , rent seeking, , , Rerum Novarum, restitution, Reverie, Tennessee, Reuters, , Reyburn, Mary, , Ricardo, David, , , Rice, Leonard, , Richard, B.W., Richards, Janet Radcliffe, , Richardson, Harry, rift zone, Riley, Brian, , Riley, Francis S., , , , Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Riparian, See ownership concepts for water bodies River Don, Rizzo, Mario, , , , 4.1-4.2 , robber barons, , , Robbins, California, Robbins, Lionel, , , Robertson, Campbell J., , Rockwell, Llewellyn H., Jr., , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11.1-11.2 Rocky Mountain Buffalo Association, Roemer, J., , , Roland, Denise, , Rome, Gregory, , , Roos, Maurice, , Rosenberg, Nathan, , Rosenblum, Marc R., Rothbard, Murray N., , , , , , , , , , 10.1-10.2 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42.1-42.2 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58.1-58.2 , 59.1-59.2 , 60 , 61 Rotman, Michael, , Rowley, Charles Kershaw, , Rozeff, Michael S., , , Rubin, Jeff, , , Rule of Law, Rummel, R J., , 2.1-2.2 Russia (also see U.S.S.R.), , , , Russo, Mitch, , Ruwart, Mary, S Sacramento City of, , , , , County, River, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 Valley, , , 3.1-3.2 , , 5.1-5.2 Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA), Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, , , , , , , Sailor, Steve, , Sakoff, A., , , Saleh, Ali Abdallah, , Saliba, Michael, , 2.1-2.2 Salisbury, David F., , , Salonia, Mark J., , salvage, , , 3.1-3.2 , 4.1-4.2 , , , , , , 10 Salvage Law, , , San Francisco City of, , , , , Bay, , , , , , , , San Joaquin River, , , , , , , Valley, , , 3.1-3.2 , , , , , San Luis Canal Co., San Luis Reservoir, San Pablo Bay, , , , Sandle, Tim, , Santoriello, Andrea, , Sardi, Bill, , , Savas, E S., , , 3.1-3.2 Sawyer Decision (Woodruff vs North Bloomfield Gravel Mining Company), , Scahill, Jeremy, , , Scandinavia, Scarborough, Brandon, , , , Scarpeleggia, David, , Schiavo, Terri, Schick, Rabbi Moses, , Schmidtz, David, , Schoenbach, Victor J., , Schumpeter, Joseph, , Schwartz, Peter, Scott, Arnold N., , Scott, Gottlieb, Scott, James C., , Scott, Rick, Scotland, Seasteading Institute, , , Sechrest, Larry, , , 3.1-3.2 Seldon, Arthur, , Seto Inland Sea, Sevier River, Shabman, Leonard, , Shaffer, Butler, , , , , 5.1-5.2 Shandong Peninsula, Sharp, Gwen, , Shasta Dam, , , , , Shugart II, William F., , Siberia, Simmons, Randy T., , , , , , , , 8.1-8.2 , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 Simon, Julian, , , , , , , , 8.1-8.2 , Simon, Leo K., Simpson, Brian, , Sinclair, A., Singapore, slave, slavery, , , , 4.1-4.2 , , , Slipke, Jeff, Smith, Adam, , , , , , , Smith, Jr., Fred L., , Smith, E Michael, Smith, Hedrik, , , Smith, Robert J., , , Snow, Nicholas A., , Snyman, Leon, Snyder, Pamala S., , Social Security, socialism, 1.1-1.2 , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16.1-16.2 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25.1-25.2 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 socialized medicine, Solomon (King), Somalia, Federal Republic of, , , , , 5.1-5.2 , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13.1-13.2 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 Somaliland province of Somalia, , , , British, , , Italian, , , Sorokanich, Robert, , South China Sea, , South Florida, , , , , , , South Florida Water Management District, South Platte River, Southeast Asia, , Southgate, Henry, , sovereignty, , Soviet Union, See U.S.S.R Sowell, Thomas, , , , species extinction, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 Speiser, Frank, , Spiro, Andreas, Spooner, Lysander, , , , , , , St Augustine, See Augustine, St St Lucie River, , , Standard Oil, stateless society, Stefánsson, G., Steinreich, Dale, , Stigler, George J., , , Stiles, Gerald, Stratton Sayre, Susan, strict liability, , , , Stringham, Edward, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 subduct, , , subjective value, subjectivism, , , , , , , subsidence, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 Suez Canal, , Suisun Bay, , Sullivan, Louis Henri, , Summa Theologica, , Sutter (California) County 13n32 Basin, , , , Bypass, Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency, , Suzuki, David, , 2.1-2.2 Swaim, Barton, , Sweden, T Tabarrok, Alexander, , TAC (Total Allowable Catch), , , Tacitus, , Tamiami Trail (Highway 41), , Tannehill, Morris and Linda, 1.1-1.2 , , , 4.1-4.2 Taylor, Arthur J., , Taylor, James Stacey, , 2.1-2.2 taxonomic phylum, technological units, , , Telecommunications Industry, Tennessee, , , Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), , 2.1-2.2 , TERs (Tradeable Emissions Rights), Terrell, Timothy D., , Territorial Use Rights in Fisheries (TURFs), , , , , thalweg, , , Thierer, Adam, Thirlby, G F., , Thomas, Ellen, , Thompson, Dixon, , Thoreau, Henry David, , , , 4.1-4.2 Thoreau Institute, , Thornburg v Port of Portland, Thornton, Mark, , , , The Times-Picayune, , Tinsley, Patrick, 1.1-1.2 , , , , , , , , Tollison, Robert D., , , Tomlinson, Charles, , Total Allowable Catch, See TAC Tracy, California, , trade freedom score, Tradeable Emissions Rights, See TERs tragedy of the commons, , , , , Tripoli, Libia, trireme, , , Tucker, Jeffrey, , , , 4.1-4.2 Tullock, Gordon, , , , 4.1-4.2 , , , , Turner, John, Twain, Mark, , , , Two Treatises of Government, typhoon, , , , U uncertainty, , , , Union of Soviet Socialisn Republics, See U.S.S.R United Islamic Courts, , United Nations, , , , , , , , 8.1-8.2 , 9.1-9.2 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14.1-14.2 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), 1.1-1.2 , , , United States, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 University of Colorado, , , U.S Army Corps of Engineers, 1.1-1.2 , 2.1-2.2 , 3.1-3.2 , , , 6.1-6.2 U.S Bureau of Land Management, 1.1-1.2 , , , , , U.S Department of Defense, , U.S Department of the Interior, , U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, US Federal Highway Administration, , U.S Food and Drug Administration, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 U.S Geological Survey (USGS), , , , U.S Post Office, , , , , , , , , , 10 U.S Submarine Structures, , U.S.S.R (Union of Soviet Socialisn Republics), , , , , , , , , , 10 Utah, , Utt, Ronald D., , V Vaiont Dam, Italy, Vance, Laurence M., , , , , , , , , Venus, Vietnam, , Vikings, Vining, Aidan R., , , , Virginia, , Vogel, Ronald J., , Voltaire, Franỗois-Marie Arouet, , vouchers, , , , 4.1-4.2 , , 6.1-6.2 , , 8.1-8.2 Voyage Home, Star Trek, Vuk, Vedran., , 2.1-2.2 W Walden, , , Walker, Deborah, , , , Walker, Douglas M., , Wall Street Journal, , , , Walras, Leon., , Walters, K.D., , Wapshott, Nicholas, , War of 1812, war on terror, Ward, Alex, , warships, , , , Washington, Booker T., , , Washington, DC, , , , Washington State Department of Transportation, See WSDOT water allocation, , , water cycle, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11 , 12 water quality, , , , Water Resources (California) Control Board, Department of, , water rights, , , , , , , , , , 10 , 11.1-11.2 , 12.1-12.2 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 water shortage, , , , , , , Watner, Carl, , , Watson, Paul Joseph, , T The Wealth of Nations (An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations), W Wenzel, Robert, , , , , , , Werth, Nicolas, West Virginia, West Virginia American Water, wetland, , , , , Westley, Christopher, , , , , White, Alan, , White, Lawrence H.,, , , White, Michael, Whitehead, Roy, , , , , , Whiteley, H.R., Wilcke, Richard R., , Wilder, Mark A., , Williams, Walter E., , Wilton, Alston, Wilton, California, Winfrey, Oprah, Wisconsin, , , Wisconsin Law Review, withholding tax, Wittman, Donald, , Wood, J Stuart, , Woodruff vs North Bloomfield Gravel Mining Company See: Sawyer Decision Woods, Thomas E Jr., , 2.1-2.2 Worldatlas.com, World Bank, , world population prospects, World War II, World Wildlife Fund, , Worstal, Tim, , WSDOT (Washington State Department of Transportation), , Y Yablonski, Brian, Yahya, Hamid ed-Din al-Mutawakkil, Yates, Steven, , , 3.1-3.2 Yeatts, Guillermo, , Yellow River, , Yemen, Republic of, 1.1-1.2 , , , , , , , 8.1-8.2 , , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 YemenWeb.com, Yolo Bypass, , Young, Adam, , , , , , , 7.1-7.2 Yuba (California) City, , , 3.1-3.2 , County, River, , Yunker, James A., , Z Zardkoohi, Asghar, , Zetland, David, , , , , , , , 8.1-8.2 , , 10 , 11 Zhemchug Canyon, Bering Sea, Zheng, Pearl Q, 1.1-1.2 , , Zizka, Paul, , About the Authors Walter E Block is Harold E Wirth Endowed Chair and Professor of Economics, College of Business, Loyola University New Orleans, and senior fellow at the Mises Institute He earned his PhD in economics at Columbia University in 1972 He has taught at Rutgers, SUNY Stony Brook, Baruch CUNY, Holy Cross and the University of Central Arkansas He lectures widely on college campuses, delivers seminars around the world and appears regularly on television and radio shows He is the Schlarbaum Laureate, Mises Institute, 2011; and has won the Loyola University Research Award and the Mises Institute’s Rothbard Medal of Freedom, 2005; theDux Academicusaward, Loyola University, 2007 Prof Block counts among his friends Ron Paul and Murray Rothbard He was converted to libertarianism by Ayn Rand Block is old enough to have once met Ludwig von Mises, and shaken his hand Block has never washed that hand since So, if you shake his hand (it’s pretty dirty, but what the heck) you channel Mises Block is a leading Austrian School economist and an international leader of the freedom movement His earliest work Defending the Undefendable (first edition Fleet 1976, latest edition Mises 2008, translated in 12 languages) is now, more than 30 years later, still regarded as a classic of libertarianism This collection of essays, which argues in behalf of societal villains as economic scapegoats based on the principles of nonaggression, forces its reader to think and to rethink his initial knee-jerk emotional responses, and to gain a new and far sounder appreciation of economic theory and of the virtues and operations of the free market economy Block’s writing was inspired by Henry Hazlitt, the author of the most widely read economics text Economics in One Lesson Block’s latest book is Yes to Ron Paul and Liberty Block has been a fixture in the libertarian movement for some four decades He actually met F.A Hayek, and was friends with, and mentored by, Murray Rothbard His contributions to academic libertarianism and to Austrian economics have been prodigious Block’s writings continue to challenge the conventional wisdom (or ignorance) of how economics works and will retain its freshness for decades to come His public speaking style has been described as a combination of that of Woody Allen, Lenny Bruce and Murray Rothbard Dr Block has written almost 500 articles for peer-reviewed refereed journals, 21 books, and literally thousands of op eds for magazines and newspapers Block appears widely on radio and television He is a contributor to such scholarly journals as The Review of Austrian Economics, Journal of Libertarian Studies, The Journal of Labor Economics, and the Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics He is currently Harold E Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair and Professor of Economics, College of Business Administration, at Loyola University New Orleans Peter Lothian Nelson is a professional engineer in the state of Colorado and previously in Wyoming His engineering specialty includes water resources, hydrology, open channel design, storm drainage, underground pipelines, and other water related issues Mr Nelson was president of PL Nelson Engineering from 2007 until 2014 and frequently served as an expert witness He has a masters degrees in divinity and engineering from Nashotah House and the University of Colorado, respectively He has had the pleasure of meeting and discussing policy and economics with Ron Paul during his first presidential run and with Murray Rothbard and Leonard Reed during visits to Denver He has taken courses from Michael Ramsey, Archbishop of Canterbury Nelson presents and teaches at engineering and church conventions Mr Nelson currently lives in Estes Park and Denver He is married (Jeanne) with two children: Patrick and Rebecca He comes originally from Northern California including Marysville, Oakland, Alameda, San Francisco, and Sonoma He has also lived in Wisconsin, New Jersey, and Washington, DC His outside interests include philosophy, history, theology, economics, and genealogy Members of Peter’s family have been in the area currently within the United States dating back to 1624 ... Water Capitalism: The Case of Privatizing Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, and Aquifers, by Walter E Block and Peter Lothian Nelson Water Capitalism The Case of Privatizing Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, and Aquifers. .. author Water capitalism : the case for privatizing oceans, rivers, lakes, and aquifers / Walter E Block and Peter L Nelson pages cm (Capitalist thought: studies in philosophy, politics, and economics)... positive case for water privatization And, indeed, the following criticisms and refutations will be investigated and digested throughout the remainder of the book For now, the authors can hear the