Is water a thing to sacrifice?

Earlier today I rode my bike to Harrisburg for a lot of reasons. I rode because I think that Governor Tom Corbett is selling the state forests out for a short-term profit, taking big money from gas companies, and selling out the people of this state. There is no severance tax on gas drilling and now the companies will have free reign in the forests. It's appalling. So I rode.

And when I rode, I saw beautiful things. Pines. The rolling Penns Valley and many of its farms. A spring where I've gotten water several times over the last 10 years on long rides. But it's in Bald Eagle State Forest and subject to Marcellus drilling. I like that water. You?

And that's the thing. How do you value water? That's how a lot of this argument and debate and the consideration of your land and someone else's land or their land and your health plays out. How do you value water? As a commodity?

If it is "just" a commodity then what do you value it against?



Is it a human right to have access to fresh and clean drinking water as Maude Barlowe has argued? If it is, then do corporations have to right to use water in non-commons ways?

The Marcellus development brings us a lot of problems not the least of which is water access and health.

More pictures and video will be up soon. And in them are some intense protests.