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| (Britannia Beach, Ottawa. Photo by Peter Dudley) |
March 22 is World Water Day and it is a time when we pay a little more attention to this essential but often neglected resource.
Here in Canada, it’s tempting to think we have an unending supply of fresh water and everyone has access to it, but that is not the case.
This is especially true for First Nations.
One of the election promises made by the Liberal Party was to end long-term water advisories on First Nations by 2021. As of today, 54 have been lifted but 81 are still in effect.
"Water is sacred for First Nations and key to a healthy environment and the health and well-being of all living things," said Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief Perry Bellegarde, said in a press release. "Yet too many First Nations are living at risk with no access to clean water. It affects our health, education and livelihood. This is unacceptable in a developed country like Canada. The federal government's goal of ending all drinking water advisories in First Nations communities by 2021 is clearly a challenge, but we can achieve it by working together in a spirit of partnership and reconciliation. World Water Day is a time to reaffirm this goal and redouble our efforts."
Compounding this problem is the fact that Canadian municipalities continue to dump sewage into rivers and oceans because they lack the infrastructure to treat all of it. This affects the quality of water for drinking, bathing and recreational use.
These problems extend beyond Canada’s borders. Globally, at least two billion people use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces, according to the World Health Organization.
There is much work to be done in order to improve the quality of water we all use. The United Nations adopted the resolution International Decade for Action – Water for Sustainable Development to raise awareness of water issues. Click here to learn more.