Guide to Community Drinking Water Advocacy
How Do I Get Started?
Look at the descriptions below to find the information you are looking for.
You can also use the filter-by-topic menu to narrow your search.
Click above if:
You have drinking water issues or want to learn how to identify drinking water issues
You want solutions for your drinking water issues
You want to engage with your community, local agencies, and state agencies to push for solutions
Click above if:
You provide drinking water through a domestic well, state small water system, public water system, or private company
You want to learn about the legal requirements for water providers and water systems
You want solutions for water system failures
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Prefer to view all the content on this website as an e-book or PDF? Download the Guide here: CWC Guide to Community Drinking Water Advocacy Book
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The Guide was first drafted by Community Water Center (CWC) co-founder Laurel Firestone with input from countless members of the movement for water justice.
Published and printed in 2009, it served as a tool for community organizing and drinking water-related law. The Guide was a unique example of drinking water activism and community lawyering when it was first published and remains so to this day in its digital and printed versions.
Many communities continue to face water challenges and CWC does not have capacity to work with every community directly. It is our hope that the Guide will impart the resources and tools for organizers to pursue systemic change for local water systems.
The Guide contains important information for owners and users of domestic wells, state small water systems, public water systems, and private water providers. And finally, we hope that academics, nonprofits, and other organizations benefit from the tools we have compiled here in the broader fight for drinking water equity.
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The documents and fact sheets within the Guide to Community Drinking Water Advocacy are not meant to serve in place of consulting an attorney on any individual legal issue. If you are concerned about something that seems legal, you should consult an attorney directly who can provide advice on your individual circumstances. Because laws do change, it is also important to check to see if changes have been made since this handbook was published.
Law Help California provides legal aid referrals and self-help tools in a number of languages. The Legal Services Corporation provides a list of contacts for all legal services organizations serving low-income residents in California.
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The Guide may direct visitors to external sites, including water agency websites and other nonprofit websites. Unfortunately, these sites may not have translation available. Additionally, Community Water Center is not responsible for any incorrect information on external sites, since it is not information within our control.
Feedback
Though much of the information in the Guide will remain the same over time, some topics require periodic updates as a response to developments in the news, legislation, and science. If any of the information in the Guide seems outdated, confusing, or incorrect, please fill out this feedback form.