Furthering the Fight to Make Clean Water a Right in California

You must be a Clearinghouse Review subscriber to view this article. Log in or subscribe.

Clean drinking water is a human right under international law, and California law recognizes a similar right. Yet more than a million Californians, mostly in rural, agricultural areas, lack access to safe drinking water. Advocates and community groups are using a a variety of strategies, such as litigation and administrative advocacy, to enforce the right to safe water. A “human right to water” package of bills now before the state legislature is expected to enhance advocates’ capacity to enforce the right.

Copies of this article are available for individual purchase online for $15 apiece.

Related Articles


By Phoebe Sarah Seaton, Kara Brodfuehrer, and Megan Beaman From September-October 2011