In video address, four former Costa Rica presidents urge Legislature to pass Water Resources Act

Former president, Laura Chinchilla is amongst the former presidents pushing for the bill’s passage. (Archive / Casa Presidencial)

July 28^th, 2015 (ICR News) In a videotaped address being circulated online, four former Costa Rican presidents – Luis Alberto Monge, Miguel Angel Rodriguez, Abel Pacheco and Laura Chinchilla – are urging the country’s Legislative Assembly to approve a bill known as the Water Resources Act.

The bill, also known as the Law for Integrated Water Resource Management, was presented in 2010 by popular initiative with 160,000 signatures.

Although in theory (and in law) the bill should have reached the Assembly within two years, the bill didn’t reach first debate until April 2014.

The bill consists of sweeping legislation that would regulate all aspects of planning, permitting, protecting, distributing and pricing potable water and supplies.

Supporters of the bill claim that its passage is urgent, noting that current regulation dates back to 1942 and more than 115 current laws, decrees and regulations and 22 public entities in charge of water management often contradict each other.

Supporters say the bill would close legal loopholes related to the privatization of water service, set strict price controls, as well as protect the country’s water supplies and environment.

Adoption of the law would also prioritize human consumption over activities such as agriculture and tourism, and would recognize universal and equal access, both in quantity and quality, to potable water as a fundamental human right, according to supporters.

The bill was approved in first debate last year, however the Constitutional Court found concerns in the text.  It was passed back to lawmakers, who are responsible for making necessary changes to the text of the bill.