Lack of Clean Drinking Water in Indigenous communities

Aug 18

Written by: Kasey McDonald, Sena Yenilmez, Kelsey Roote, Nudrat Karim, Shreya Shah, Lazaya Villenueve, and Jennifer Wu.

Introduction:

Water and sanitation is a basic human right, recognized as such by the United Nations- yet dozens of Indigenous communities across what is currently Canada do not have access to clean drinking water. In 2015, the Canadian government committed to end all of the long-term drinking water advisories in Indigenous communities by March 2021. However, there are still 51 long-term drinking water advisories in place with the government pushing back its deadline to end water advisories to 2026.

Why is Clean Water inaccessible to Indigenous communities?

Despite Canada possessing the world’s third largest freshwater reserves, many Indigenous communities are not supplied with clean safe drinking water, a crisis that has been going on for decades.

In Canada, drinking water advisories are issued to warn people not to drink unsafe water. These are issued when there are problems with the water treatment system or the water has viruses, bacteria, parasites or chemical pollutants causing diseases and health problems.

Some reasons why these water advisories exist:

Marginalization
Contamination
Remote areas
Maintenance of systems

Remote areas:

Governments only give a certain amount of money when it comes to this issue and some reserves may be more remote from a water source or a city, causing it to be more costly for the reserves affected and some reserves do not have the funds to support themselves and keep up continuous maintenance. Reserves that are remote from cities facing lack of clean water also have to worry about the access they have to water due to the fact that some reserves have no sources of water nearby, so they have to travel great lengths just to get unsafe water. Retrieving the materials needed for the water systems can also be a huge factor due the remoteness of a reserve, communities may lack certain types of equipment or transportation needed to ensure that everything runs smoothly and they have safe water systems in place.

Contamination:

Indigenous communities frequently have their waterways and lands polluted by effluence, typically from major corporations. For example, Grassy Narrows had a chemical plant dump around 10 tons of toxic mercury into a river upstream from the community resulting in more than half a decade of unsafe water and ecological damage.

Marginalization:

Indigenous peoples are often pushed to the side when it comes to making decisions, or when they have problems in their own communities that they need help with. When Indigenous peoples speak out about the lack of clean water they have they are often faced with broken promises. Canadian governments are aware that Indigenous reserves do not have clean drinking water but unfortunately they do not seem to do anything about it whatsoever. In addition, the pollution of waterways disproportionately affects Indigenous communities because of systemic and environmental racism, as well as institutions failing to uphold the duty to consult.

Maintenance of Systems:

Indigenous communities without clean water often lack the finances to maintain the water systems in the future. Governments provide only a certain amount of funds to Indigenous reserves for the issue of clean water and the maintenance of the systems, but quite often these funds aren’t enough for the long term maintenance which causes barriers on the water supply in the long run.

How does this impact Indigenous communities?

Health conditions and mental health impacts

These types of contaminants found in the drinking water are cancer causing. The exposure to this type of water on reserves can cause health issues ranging from gastrointestinal disorders to an increased risk of cancer.
The daily hardship of living under a water advisory for years means that some people become frustrated and drink it without boiling or otherwise treating it—risking exposure to contaminants.
Skin infections, psoriasis, eczema, or other skin problems
Financial burden
Conflict within band councils and First Nations communities due to lack of direction on who funds the drinking water and water systems - government or band?
- Damaging relationships between communities and government and relationships within the community
⅕ First Nations household in Ontario relies on a private well for drinking water, and 57 percent of households rely on a household septic system. The cost to monitor quality and maintain the safety of these systems can be difficult to afford.
The cost to fix failed systems is often very high.
Restricted access to traditional food systems (fish).
Lowers quality of life.
For Indigenous peoples, many are environmental stewards. Contaminated water not only impacts Indigenous communities, but also has an adverse effect on the general environment surrounding these communities. This causes the overall quality of life to become lowered.
Cultural rights - Damaging the spiritual connection and importance of water.
We see water as medicine, not being able to drink your own water is damaging.
Ceremonies, customary fishing and hunting practices, and ways of teaching children and sharing traditional knowledge are impacted when water is contaminated.
Poor water and sanitation situation contributes to the severe housing shortage in reserves.

How can we help?

Send a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and tell him it’s time to end drinking water advisories in Indigenous communities

Volunteer with organizations to build infrastructure and provide safe drinking water for Indigenous communities
Raise awareness on the crisis through social media
Donate to the following organizations:
- Water First
- True North Aid
- Water For People Canada
Sign the following petitions (on Change.org):
- Stop Call to Action: Support Neskantaga First Nation & End Long-Term Drinking Water Advisories
- Stop the Underfunding of Water Plants on Indigenous Reserves
- Clean water for Indigenous communities drinking from the Great Lakes Basin
Educate yourself and others on the severity of the issue
Educate yourself on the Indigenous communities near you that are under a water advisory and spread awareness in your community
Play a role in preventing the building of infrastructure that has the potential to further harm the water sources for Indigenous communities- stand with Indigenous peoples to fight off threats like pipeline development
Call government officials and demand change
Hold companies and corporations that are prolonging the crises accountable (ex. Reed Pulp and Paper Mill who have caused the water contamination for Grassy Narrows and Wabaseemoong First Nations and Domtar who is not taking solid steps to resolving the crisis in those communities).

Recap:

Food, water, and air--these are the three most basic requisites to life. In a world in which there are robot dogs, talking toilets, spaceships on Mars exist, shouldn’t humanity have moved past its fundamental issues? Not really, and the reason is just as repetitive as you might think: institutionalized racism.

Though water and sanitation are basic human rights, recognized as such by the United Nations, dozens of Indigenous communities across what is currently Canada do not have access to clean drinking water. In 2015, the Canadian government committed to end all of the long-term drinking water advisories in Indigenous communities by March 2021. However, there are still 51 long-term drinking water advisories in place with the government pushing back its deadline to end water advisories to 2026.

Despite Canada possessing the world’s third largest freshwater reserves, many Indigenous communities are not supplied with clean, safe drinking water--a crisis that has been going on for decades. In Canada, these drinking water advisories are normally issued to warn people not to drink unsafe water, such as water treatment issues contaminated by viruses, bacteria, parasites or chemical pollutants.

Specifically, Indigenous communities are vulnerable to water contamination due to a few factors: marginalization, contamination, remote areas and maintenance of systems. Governments only allot limited funding to combat water contamination. Some water reserves are remote from a water source or city, resulting in more costly maintenance. Rural communities also have to travel great lengths just to receive contaminated water due to the lack of safe water nearby, especially since many communities lack certain types of equipment or transportation needed to ensure the safety of water systems.

Indigenous communities frequently have their waterways and lands polluted by effluence, typically from major corporations. For example, a Grassy Narrows chemical plant dumped around ten tons of toxic mercury into a river upstream from the community, resulting in more than half a decade of unsafe water and ecological damage.

On top of that, Indigenous peoples are often pushed to the side when it comes to making decisions or when they have problems in their own communities. When native peoples speak out about the lack of clean water, they are often faced with broken promises; the Canadian government is aware that Indigenous reserves do not have clean drinking water but has thus far failed to propose solutions or take accountability. The lack of federal support only worsens the current situation, as many Indigenous communities without clean water lack the finances to maintain the water systems in the future. The government only provides a certain amount of funds to Indigenous reserves for the issue of clean waters, but often these funds aren’t enough for long term maintenance. Most importantly, the pollution of waterways disproportionately affects Indigenous communities because of systemic and environmental racism, as well as institutions failing to uphold the duty to consult.

Clean water matters because the types of contaminants found in the drinking water are often associated with cancer, gastrointestinal disorders, skin infections, and other health conditions. Lack of clean water restricts indigenous access to traditional food systems from historically significant bodies of water and also increases the financial burden on native peoples. One fifth of First Nations households in Ontario rely on a private well for drinking water, and 57 percent of households rely on a household septic system. Culturally, many Indigenous people see the water on native lands as medicinal, possessing a spiritually significant quality. When water is contaminated, ceremonies, customary fishing and hunting practices, and ways of teaching children traditional knowledge are impacted.

So how can we help Indigenous people? Firstly, we can send letters to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and tell him it’s time to end drinking water advisories in Indigenous communities. Try to volunteer with organizations to build infrastructure and provide safe drinking water for Indigenous communities. Hold companies and corporations that are prolonging the crises accountable--such as Reed Pulp and Paper Mill--who have caused the water contamination for Grassy Narrows and Wabaseemoong First Nations. As always, try and raise awareness on the crisis through social media! Additionally, please donate to the following organizations if possible: Water First, True North Aid, and Water For People Canada. Below we’ve listed the following petitions to sign:

Stop Call to Action: Support Neskantaga First Nation & End Long-Term Drinking Water Advisories
Stop the Underfunding of Water Plants on Indigenous Reserves
Clean water for Indigenous communities drinking from the Great Lakes Basin

Research Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/30/canada-first-nations-justin-trudeau-drinking-water

The Indigenous Foundation .