Globe and Mail. By Bill Curry -
Threats to drinking supplies are real and many, new group says in report to be released today
OTTAWA — The "myth" of freshwater abundance in this country should be abandoned by Canadians and their governments, warns a report from an expert panel recommending radical action to protect the nation's drinking water.
The newly formed Gordon Water Group, which describes itself as an organization of scientists, lawyers, policy experts and former senior government policy advisers led by the Sierra Club of Canada, is releasing the 55-page call to action Friday.
The threats to Canada's drinking water are many, it says. Climate change, the Alberta oil-sands projects, hydroelectric dams, using too much water and flushing untreated waste into lakes and rivers are all cited as concerns.
"The failure to address these problems shows the need for radical improvements in the governance of our freshwater legacy," the report states. "Despite the persistent Canadian myth that our freshwater resources are abundant, we must now face the very real potential that regions throughout Canada, especially in the Western provinces, may experience severe water scarcity. Today, the stakes of mismanagement and inaction are much higher than before."
The report is being released on the heels of the Conservative government's Throne Speech, which promised a new federal water strategy. The speech commits Ottawa to new investments in water-treatment facilities and a stronger enforcement regime "that will make polluters accountable."
Yesterday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in Nipigon, Ont., where he announced the creation of a new National Marine Conservation Area. The measure promises to protect Lake Superior's north shore, including 10,000 square kilometres of lakebed, islands and shore lands.
The Throne Speech also promised not to intrude in provincial areas of jurisdiction. The Gordon Water Group report takes issue with a common assumption that water is a provincial issue. "The federal government has clear constitutional powers relating to fisheries, shipping and First Nations peoples," it says.
The report marks the 20th anniversary of the 1987 Federal Water Policy, which made more than 100 pledges but delivered little, writes Ralph Pentland, who co-authored the Gordon Water Group report and drafted the 1987 plan.
The Gordon Water Group is named through its connection with the Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation, a public policy think tank.
Today's report calls on Ottawa to take 25 specific actions, among them:
Develop a national freshwater strategy.
Create a national water fund for joint federal-provincial conservation projects.
Impose hard caps on water use by oil-sands projects.
Legislate a Safe Drinking Water Act to establish minimum national standards.
Provide new money for safe drinking water on native reserves and recognize aboriginal water rights.
Negotiate a specific exemption to the North American free-trade agreement for freshwater and legislate a ban on bulk water exports.
Speaking on behalf of the group, Brenda Lucas said Canada's freshwater statistics can be misleading because most watersheds are in the Far North, while the population is mostly huddled across Canada's southern border.
"Water is all around us in Canada, so we tend to take it for granted," she said. "But when you really look at what's available to us, what our renewable supply is, it's only about 6 per cent of the world's renewable supply."