Finding itself with a water system it can't afford to repair, Moncton is looking at turning the works over to a private company.

The city has had bad water for years, with many boil water orders on the books. And the mayor says there's no money to fix the problem.

"We're just coming to a realization of what kind of problems lay out there," said Mayor Brian Murphy.

Brian Murphy

"We're here now because other levels of government would not fund a water treatment plant through the traditional methods," he said.

USFilter, a subsidiary of multinational giant Vivendi, has proposed taking the corroding water system off the city's hands.

The company built a treatment plant for Moncton's water, and is now proposing to look after its maintenance and operations for the next 20 years. They already do that in other cities around the world.

Wally MacKinnon

"We serve over 100 million people in over 100 countries," said Wally MacKinnon.

He said Moncton would be the first major contract for the company in Canada, but figures it wouldn't be the last.

"Once somebody jumps in and they say, 'Hey the water's fine' – no pun intended, of course – others are motivated to look as well," MacKinnon said.

Beth MacLaughlin

But not everyone believes the water will be fine.

"Well, the history of these water companies is that the standards deteriorate," said Beth MacLaughlin, an environmental activist in New Brunswick. "In fact, the profits are not reinvested into the system to renovate or to even maintain."

Last year, Vancouver backed away from a similar proposal, and Moncton's council wants to study the issue further.