NAN says more action needed to eliminate drinking water advisories in First Nations
Tim Brody - Editor
Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler is expressing disappointment and concern, after Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller admitted at a press conference in Ottawa on Dec. 2 that the federal government would not meet its commitment to lift all long-term drinking water advisories in First Nations by March of 2021.
“While there have been many reasons for the delay, I want to state as clearly as possible, that ultimately, I bear the responsibility for this, and I have the responsibility and the duty to get this done.”
“This was an ambitious deadline from the get-go,” he stated.
Miller announced more than $1.5 billion in additional investments to accelerate work to lift all long-term drinking water advisories on reserves, as well as $114.1 million per year ongoing thereafter to support daily operations and maintenance for water infrastructure on reserves.
“Using the coronavirus to walk back this commitment was predictable. I am disappointed, but not surprised that the government has abandoned this target. Everyone needs safe water, especially during a global pandemic, and this work should have been prioritized. I acknowledge the new funding commitments, but I am concerned that these are open-ended goals without firm timelines or accountability,” Fiddler said.
“NAN First Nations have been waiting for these resources for far too long. If this government is serious about re-setting this agenda, the work must be done in a collaborative way that meets the needs of our communities. This includes establishing policy to ensure that funding structures for new plants, upgrades, and operation and maintenance truly meet their needs. We need to double-down and fix these systems as quickly as possible to provide assurance to our communities that the work that needs to be done, will be done. I ask Minister Miller and this government to join us in this commitment,” Fiddler added.
NAN shared in a media release that, “The design and construction of water treatment and distribution systems in remote First Nations presents unique challenges, and operation and maintenance funding is severely inadequate under current federal formulas. NAN’s 2018 Education Infrastructure Needs Assessment found that current funding levels only covers approximately 44 per cent of the actual costs of properly operating and maintaining infrastructure in NAN communities.”
NAN further explained that the lack of sufficient operation and maintenance funding is one of the main causes of water problems in NAN First Nations.
“Even with the Minister’s commitment that funding will be provided at 100 per cent, the current funding formula is severely flawed and operation and maintenance will remain significantly underfunded. This leads to an endless cycle of costly breakdowns and service disruption.
“NAN welcomes the Minister’s commitment to developing new polices around operation and maintenance funding, but NAN leadership must be directly involved to ensure that actual needs and costs are met,” NAN shared.
There are currently 11 long-term drinking water advisories and four short-term drinking water advisories in NAN communities:
Long-term Drinking Water Advisories (over 1 year):
- Muskrat Dam Lake
- Sandy Lake
- Sachigo Lake
- Nibinamik
- Deer Lake
- Bearskin Lake Community Centre / Arena / Youth Centre (semi-public) water system
- Mishkeegogamang 63A
- Neskantaga
- North Spirit Lake
- Wawakapewin
- Marten Falls
Short-term Drinking Water Advisories (less than 1 year):
- Bearskin Lake Nursing Station (semi-public) water system
- Mishkeegogamang Ace Lake (public) water system
- North Caribou Lake
- Wapekeka
“Evacuated members of Neskantaga First Nation are still waiting to return after being forced to leave their homes in October after a complete shutdown of the remote community’s water system due to a contaminant. Neskantaga has not had safe drinking water since 1995 – the longest running boil water advisory in Canada. Today (Dec. 2), there is still no running water in the community, including the temporary reverse osmosis system that the community has relied on for years as the only source of safe drinking water,” NAN concluded.
According to Indigenous Services Canada:
- Between November 2015 and November 2020, through the work done in partnership with First Nation communities and other partners, 97 long-term drinking water advisories have been lifted and 171 short-term advisories were prevented from becoming long-term.
- Since 2016, the Government of Canada has made $2.19 billion in commitments to First Nations to build and repair water and wastewater infrastructure and support effective management and maintenance of water systems on reserves. $1.65 billion of this has been invested in 626 water and wastewater projects in 581 First Nations communities, serving approximately 462,000 people.
- All First Nations communities now have access to trained personnel to sample and test drinking water quality, which is being monitored regularly. As a result, First Nations and the Government of Canada are better able more quickly detect and address potential problems in water systems.