The politics and economics of privatization: the case of wastewater treatment

Privatization is both an economic adaptation and a strategy to alter the political landscape and the historical relationships between the public and the private sectors. Both of these aspects of privatization need to be understood and appreciated because one cannot take place without the other. The roles and dynamics of the public and private sectors change in privatization. Thus, the need arises for linking mechanisms able to harness and mesh the chanenged roles and dynamics of the two sectors.            The Politics and Economics of Privatization identifies, defines, and addresses these implications. It does so by discussing the attempts in the 1980s to meet clean water needs through the privatization of wastewater treatment facilities. What is privatization? How does it work? What is required? What does it cost? Is it acceptable? What issues does it raise? What are its implications for the implementation of national policy?