DIPLOMARBEIT Titel der Diplomarbeit „Access to Water – Discourse and Comparison of Urban Water Supply Systems in Casablanca, Durban and Vienna“ Verfasser Martin Böhnel angestrebter akademischer Grad Magister (Mag.) Wien, 2010 Studienkennzahl It. Studienblatt: A 057 390 Studienrichtung It. Studienblatt: Individuelles Diplomstudium Internationale Entwicklung Betreuer: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Walter Schicho 1 Table of Contents DANKSAGUNG .......................................................................................................................................... 9 ABBREVIATIONS, FIGURES AND TABLES .................................................................................................. 11 I INTRODUCTION, PURPOSE AND OUTLINE ...................................................................................... 17 1. PRELIMINARY THOUGHTS .............................................................................................................. 17 1.1. BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................................................ 17 1.2. PURPOSE AND RESEARCH QUESTION ............................................................................................................ 18 1.3. OUTLINE ............................................................................................................................................... 19 II CONCEPTUALIZING WATER ON AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL ............................................................ 22 2. CONFERENCES, DECLARATIONS AND DEFINITIONS ........................................................................ 22 2.1. THE 1977 MARA DEL PLATA SUMMIT ........................................................................................................ 22 2.2. THE 1992 RIO SUMMIT ........................................................................................................................... 23 2.3. THE DUBLIN PRINCIPLES ........................................................................................................................... 24 2.4. WATER IS A BASIC NEED! AND WHAT ABOUT ACCESS? ................................................................................... 26 2.5. WATER IS A HUMAN RIGHT ....................................................................................................................... 28 2.6. CONCEPTUALIZING ACCESS ..................................................................................................................... 29 2.6.1. The Access Gap and Goal 7 Target 10 ........................................................................................ 29 2.6.2. Different standards of Access opportunities to Water ............................................................... 30 2.6.3. Global Access to Water in Numbers ........................................................................................... 31 2.7. UN`S DEFINITION OF WATER AND THE RESEARCH QUESTION ........................................................................... 32 2.8. HYPOTHESIS AND DEFINITION OF WATER ..................................................................................................... 34 2.8.1. Hypothesis .................................................................................................................................. 34 2.8.2. So what type of Good? Defining Water...................................................................................... 34 III DIFFERENT ASSUMPTIONS ON WATER ........................................................................................... 38 3. CONDITIONS WITHIN THE LAW, SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST AND THE POSSIBILITIES OF NATIONAL REGULATION OF THE WATER SECTOR IN AUSTRIA ................................................................ 38 3.1. GENERAL PUBLIC SERVICE: HISTORICAL OUTLINE AND DEFINITION ..................................................................... 39 3.1.1. Historical outline about general public service .......................................................................... 39 3.1.2. Defining general public service .................................................................................................. 39 3.2. IS THERE SUFFICIENT WATER? AUSTRIAS`S WATER BALANCE ........................................................................... 41 3.3. REGULATION/REGUALTORY SYSTEM ........................................................................................................... 44 3.3.1. Controlling Prices ....................................................................................................................... 46 3.3.2. Controlling Quality ..................................................................................................................... 49 3.3.2.1. Statutory measures at a national level ................................................................................................ 49 3.3.2.2. Statutory measures within the EU ...................................................................................................... 50 3.3.2.3. Measuring the quality of water ........................................................................................................... 50 3.4. STATUTORY MEASURES ON ACCESS ........................................................................................................... 52 3.5. WATER SUPPLY IN AUSTRIA: GENERAL DATA ................................................................................................ 52 3.6. EXCURSUS: ARE THERE PROPERTY RIGHTS ON WATER?................................................................................. 53 3.7. STATUTORY DEFINITION ON WATER ........................................................................................................... 54 4. WHAT DOES “COST RECOVERY” HAVE TO DO WITH “PRIVATIZATION”? OPINIONS FROM THE PROPONENTS AND OPPONENTS PERSPECTIVE ........................................................................................ 55 4.1. WHAT IS BEHIND THE TERM PRIVATIZATION, FULL PRIVATIZATION, PRIVATE-SECTOR PARTICPATION (PSP) AND PRIVATE-PUBLIC PARTNERSHIP (PPP)? .............................................................................................................. 57 4.1.1. Privatization ............................................................................................................................... 57 4.1.2. Full Privatization ........................................................................................................................ 57 4.1.3. Private-Sector Participation (PSP) .............................................................................................. 58 3 4.2. COST RECOVERY: DEFINITION AND COST RECOVERY FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES .................................................... 61 4.2.1. Defining and conceptualizing cost recovery ............................................................................... 61 4.2.2. Cost Recovery for practical purposes ......................................................................................... 62 4.3. POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE EFFECT OF PRIVATE-SECTOR PARTICIPATION ................................................................. 64 4.3.1. Positive effects ........................................................................................................................... 64 4.3.2. Negative effects ......................................................................................................................... 64 4.4. RISKS WITHIN PRIVATE-SECTOR PARTICIPATION ............................................................................................. 65 4.4.1. Political risks............................................................................................................................... 65 4.4.2. Economic risks ............................................................................................................................ 65 4.4.3. Financial risks ............................................................................................................................. 65 4.5. COST RECOVERY AND ITS LINK TO PRIVATIZATION: SOME DIVERGING OPINIONS ................................................... 66 4.5.1. Fiscal arguments ........................................................................................................................ 67 4.5.2. Moral arguments ....................................................................................................................... 69 4.5.3. Commercial Arguments .............................................................................................................. 71 IV ANALYSIS ....................................................................................................................................... 74 5. URBAN WATER SUPPLY IN VIENNA (AUSTRIA) .................................................................................... 74 5.1. DEFINING WATER SUPPLY......................................................................................................................... 75 5.2. DEFINING MONOPOLY ............................................................................................................................. 75 5.3. THE CITY OF VIENNA ................................................................................................................................ 76 5.3.1. Administration: Wiener Wasserwerke ......................................................................................