Anger about the pollution of Bali and the Bali Sea with plastic. That’s how it all started. When snorkelling, tourists are alarmed to feel plastic bags and bottles brush against their skin, and when diving, they are shocked at the sight of plastics in the coral. So called ‘trash heroes’ collect plastic on the beach. Some make even necklaces and bracelets of it. All the while, the Balinese are blamed for causing the problem..
Villa owner Kees Dijkman in his own way combats the use of ‘plastic water.’ He decides to share the pure water from his spring with the local villagers and even pipes it to the village. ‘We have tap water,’ was their delighted reaction, and tourists filled their water bottles and no longer bought plastic water. Soon news of the new water pipeline in east Bali reached the press, even as far away as the Netherlands.
Not long afterwards, Max the villa dog refused to drink the villa spring water, a chemical haze hovered above the swimming pool, ducks in the villa pond convulsed and collapsed, and the remaining guests fled.
Kees Dijkman was perplexed, but his staff were very clear about the cause: black magic used by a jealous neighbour. Kees had the spring water tested again, and was shocked by the results.
The battle surrounding plastic water is the book’s central theme. It draws the reader to a Bali beach strewn with plastic bottles, to the boardroom of Danesto International, the slums of New Delhi and to Singapore’s high tech world, and explores the history of bottled water in Java.
Author Derk Izaks shows how a multinational company uses mafia – like practices to defend its interests and highlights the ruthless power politics in the boardroom. In the midst of all this, a murder is committed by someone who is completely right, a love explodes like a lightning bolt, and an affection grows into love.
About the author
Derk Izaks studied business administration and management at Erasmus University and Harvard Business School. He worked as a consultant and manager. He also established and directed his own consultancy company. Nowadays, he lives and works in the Netherlands and Bali, Indonesia.