please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages the examples and perspective in this article may not include all significant viewpoints . please improve the article or discuss the issue . august 2011 learn how and when to remove this template message this article contains content that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . august 2011 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message veolia water type subsidiary industry water supply water treatment and sewage treatment founded 1853 headquarters paris france key people jean michel herrewyn chief executive officer 1 revenue 12.5 billion owner veolia environnement number of employees 95 789 subsidiaries proxiserve sede environnement s tude seureca sidef veolia water solutions & technologies website www.veolia.com veolia water formerly vivendi water originally g n rale des eaux is the water division of the french company veolia environnement and the world s largest supplier of water services . 2 in 2009 the group posted revenues of 12.56 billion . 3 of this 72.9 % of turnover comes from europe ; 7.4 % from the americas 8.5 % from africa middle east and india and 11.2 % from the asia pacific region . 4 contents 1 history 2 activities 2.1 drinking water 2.2 waste water treatment 2.3 other services 3 sustainable development 4 major subsidiaries 5 controversies 5.1 human rights issues 23 5.2 contract violations 5.3 in the media 6 references 7 external links history edit the compagnie g n rale des eaux cge was created in 1853 . in 1889 its first research laboratory was established at 52 rue d anjou in paris france . veolia water s headquarters are still located at this site . 1918 saw the creation of the sade soci t auxiliaire des distributions d eau specialising in water networks and the delivery of drinking water . in 1953 construction began on a veolia water treatment facility at clay lane near london ; by 2001 it was the world s largest ultrafiltration plant supplying water to 750 000 people in the city . veolia water s humanitarian crisis response team waterforce was created in 1998 prompted by hurricane mitch in nicaragua and the flooding of the yangtze river in china . in 2002 veolia water expanded its municipal water services in 2002 to major cities such as indianapolis usa bucharest romania berlin germany and shanghai china . three years later veolia environnement united its four global divisions environmental services energy transport and water under the veolia brand . the cge became veolia water . 5 the uk water supply businesses branded as veolia water were sold by veolia environnement for 1.2 billion on 28 june 2012 to rift acquisitions an entity established by morgan stanley and m & g investments . veolia environnement is using the proceeds of the disposal to reduce its debt as part of a 5bn euro debt reduction programme announced in december 2011 and will retain a 10 % stake in the new business affinity water for at least five years . 6 7 affinity water began operations on 1 october 2012 . activities edit a lagoon used for sewage treatment along interstate 5 in everett washington veolia water s activities can be grouped into two main areas providing clean drinking water and collecting and treating waste water sewerage water . 8 drinking water edit veolia water sources water from the environment surface water deposits rivers and subterranean aquifers ; treats it to ensure it is drinkable ; provides safe and clean piping and storage ; and distributes it to populations . veolia water supplies nearly 95 million people around the world with drinking water . 9 waste water treatment edit a sewage treatment plant in portugal veolia water collects and then treats water in line with national and international regulations . different treatments are provided depending on the level of pollution . afterwards the water re enters the water cycle . veolia water delivers water treatment services to 68 million people around the world and as of 2009 it managed 3 229 municipal water treatment plants . 10 in october 2010 veolia water was contracted to rebuild a waste water treatment plant in lille france in a project that will ultimately have the capacity to treat waste water from 620 000 inhabitants in the region . 11 the company also secured the management of the grand prado treatment facility on the island of reunion france . 12 other services edit veolia water also provides a number of additional technologies and services . the company produces water for industrial processes and offers treatment heating cooling and cleaning applications for industry . 13 in august 2010 veolia water was awarded the wastewater treatment contract for the petrobras papa terra p63 offshore oil production project located in the campos basin off the coast of brazil . 14 veolia has built 15 % of the world s desalination capacity . 15 some estimates suggest that the global water desalination market will double in the period 2010 2016 . 16 veolia water offers two main technologies reverse osmosis and thermal desalination . in reverse osmosis water is passed through membranes under pressure ; the membrane allows water to circulate but captures the salts . during thermal desalination water is vaporized in distillation chambers to separate out the salts it contains . 17 veolia water also operates in alternative recycling markets . water that is clean but not purified for human consumption is suitable for irrigation industrial uses and the injection and storage of water into underground aquifers after additional treatment . 18 veolia water works to replenish subterranean aquifers which are being exhausted through over exploitation in some areas . replenishment can be achieved with treated water of various kinds surface water rainwater and treated waste water . 19 sustainable development edit veolia water works on reducing the environmental impact of water use through a number of strategies . saving water reducing leaks in the system and managing consumption through systems such as water meters . protecting water resources treating wastewater and preventing pollution for example by avoiding discharge into aquifers . limiting the environmental impact of energy use optimizing facilities exploring water as a source of renewable energy . veolia water solutions and technologies has begun a carbon initiative to analyze the sources of customers emissions and offer lower carbon water treatment solutions . developing alternative resources recycling treated water recharging aquifers desalinating seawater . 20 in 2008 veolia water established grameen veolia water ltd in partnership with the grameen bank aiming to provide clean drinking water to 100 000 people in bangladesh . 5 major subsidiaries edit veolia water s subsidiaries include sade which to builds and maintains water mains and water networks for delivering and distributing drinking water and processing waste water . veolia water solutions and technologies provides services to both local authorities and private industry aiming to help them to reduce their environmental impact . in 2007 a joint venture between doshion limited a water solutions giant in gujarat india and veolia water solutions and technologies was signed thus gave formation to doshion veolia water solutions . this turned out to be a bad venture which did not bring any benefits to veolia s investors and the company s services . two engineering advisory agencies seureca international and setude france focused . these agencies specialize in water management water treatment and the environment . kr ger a s denmark annual renevue 177 000 000 2008 21 veolia water also has joint subsidiaries with other veolia divisions . with dalkia it has proxiserve . this subsidiary offers a number of home based or domestic solutions including heating and water distribution systems . with veolia environmental services it has sede environnement management of waste sludge and sidef services to industry for the treatment of effluent . 22 controversies edit human rights issues 23 edit veolia is the largest water privatization business in the world and has come under attack by water rights activists for many of its contracts that reveal consistent prioritization of private profit at the expense of the environment and public interest . see the 2011 report by food & water watch for more information . while public facilities are accountable to the public often creating increased transparency and efficiency private facilities are not . if a company chooses to abuse its privilege by hiking up price rates or cutting costs in ways that are detrimental to the public it is much more difficult to fight . worldwide consumers report that veolia consistently charges high rates provides poor service and fails to make promised improvements . as highlighted in a report prepared by novato friends of locally operated wastewater as part of their campaign against this company veolia has additionally shown a lack of care for public welfare by cost cutting and lack of proper oversight high staffing turnover and failure to attract experienced staff regional response plans slow down emergency responses liability assignment provisions skirt full responsibility contract fee schedules encourage maintenance deferrals & substandard equipment use while discouraging water conservation effort . contract violations edit these examples from the united states are compiled from the 2009 report by food & water watch titled money down the drain how private control of water wastes public resources a 2010 food & water watch factsheet titleda closer look veolia environnement a 2011 report by food and water watch titled veolia environnement a profile of the world s largest water service corporation and a report prepared by novato friends of locally operated wastewater titled veolia and the environment a bad fit for novato . california burlingame ca veolia settled out of court when sued under the clean water act for dumping more than 10 million gallons of wastewater and untreated sewage over a 5 year period into the san francisco bay after creating an inadequate improvement project . richmond ca veolia and richmond settled out of court when sued for dumping more than 17 million gallons of sewage into tributaries after initiating a capital improvement project . voters approved a 20 million bond to pay for sewer repairs which richmond used to privatize its sewers over three years and then sign a 20 year 70 million contract with veolia . taxpayers had to shell out 500 000 annually to compensate for related property damage . in 2008 the plant had 22 spills of more than 2 million gallons of sewage . connecticut bridgeport cn mayor convicted on 16 counts including taking kickbacks bribes and extortion along with 8 other defendants over a psg vivendi contract proposal . danbury cn in a short sighted attempt to balance its municipal budget the city leased its sewers in exchange for a 10 million upfront payment at 22 million overall expense . delaware wilmington de failures to upgrade and repair have resulted in years of sewage spills ; environmental violations ; state fines ; horrendously foul odors ; sewage overflow outlets which annually send over a billion gallons of contaminated wastewater into area waterways ; and contract disputes over a 55 % rate hike . idaho burley id in 2009 after cancelling its wastewater contract with veolia the city had to make thousands of dollars in repairs to the treatment plant because of the company s neglect and poor maintenance . indiana indianapolis in veolia has been sued for breaking state contract law and for overcharging 250 000 residents . non union employees have had pension health care and benefits cut 50 million over the 20 year contract . with the second worst drinking water in the country a grand jury has subpoenaed four veolia employees for allegations of falsifying water reports amid accusations by city and county officials that