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AFN press release

Assembly of First Nationbs, Polaris Institute and Canadian Labour Congress release Boiling Point - Six Community Profiles of the Water Crisis Facing First Nations within Canada

OTTAWA, May 22 - Today Phil Fontaine, the National Chief of the AFN, Tony Clarke, the Executive Director of Polaris Institute and the Canadian Labour Congress released a publication on the water crisis facing First Nation communities in Canada. Boiling Point, written by the Polaris Institute, showcases six First Nation communities that have and continue to face water crises including contaminated source, well and tap water and long-standing boil water advisories.

"The crisis in our communities is untenable," National Chief Phil Fontaine noted. "In a country like Canada - that has the most fresh water in the world - to have First Nation communities struggle on a daily basis to provide their citizens with healthy water for drinking and clean water for bathing is completely unacceptable."

"The shocking and deplorable conditions of First Nation communities being denied access to safe, clean drinking water is similar to what I have witnessed myself in Mexico, India, South Africa and other Third World countries," said Tony Clarke of the Polaris Institute and author of several books on water. "Water is a basic human right and Boiling Point should be a wake-up call for people across Canada to demand concerted action from our governments now."

Hassan Yussuff, Secretary Treasurer for the Canadian Labour Congress commented, "Canadians expect a swift response anytime they face a boil water advisory of the public water system, yet nearly 100 First Nation communities live with these advisories on a daily basis, and in some cases endure tainted, polluted and utterly undrinkable water for years-this is nothing less than a fundamental violation of what should be a basic human right."

Boiling Point provides a critical review of the ongoing lack of progress and action on the part of government in providing safe drinking water to First Nation communities. The six profiles are only a small sample of the ongoing struggles many First Nation communities face in Canada. The Polaris Institute and the Canadian Labour Congress join the Assembly of First Nations in challenging the federal government to implement long-term solutions based on equality and respect to ensure access to safe drinking water, source water and sanitation.

The document is available from the AFN and Polaris as well as on their respective websites.

Click here for a PDF copy of the Boiling Point report (2 M)

The Assembly of First Nations is the national organization representing First Nations citizens in Canada.

The Polaris Institute works with citizen and social movements in developing new tools and strategies for changing public policies on water and other issues.

The Canadian Labour Congress is the largest democratic and popular organization in Canada with over three million members. The Canadian Labour Congress brings together Canada's national and international unions, the provincial and territorial federations of labour and 136 district labour councils.

For further information: Joan McEwen, Director of Communications, Assembly of First Nations, (613) 241-6789 ext. 242, jmcewen@afn.ca;. Andrea Harden-Donahue, Polaris Institute, Water Campaign, (613) 237-1717 ext.102, andi@polarisinstitute.org;. Karl Flecker, Canadian Labour Congress, National Director of Anti-Racism and Human Rights, Cell: (613) 614-7065, kflecker@clc-ctc.ca.
 
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From the Montreal Gazette

Water 'a source of fear' for aboriginals, report says - Conditions at many sites assailed as 'deplorable'

MIKE DE SOUZA, Canwest News Service

Water quality in aboriginal communities and reserves across the country has reached a "boiling point," warns a new report by the Polaris Institute, the Assembly of First Nations and the Canadian Labour Congress.

"The deplorable conditions that First Nations people live in would not be accepted in any other part of the country," says the report, released yesterday. It is co-authored by Andrea Harden and Holly Levaillant of the Polaris Institute, an advocacy group that challenges corporate influence on public policy issues.

"For many, water has become a source of fear, and people have good reason to believe that what comes out of their taps may be making them sick. What is happening should be considered a violation of fundamental human rights in this country."

The report focused on six First Nations communities: Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg in Quebec, Landsdowne House and Pikangikum in Ontario, Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan, Fort Chipewyan in Alberta and Little Salmon Carmacks in Yukon. It says the situation has reached a crisis for many residents.

"One of the problems we face is that there is a tendency to blame us for the situation," Phil Fontaine, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, said at a news conference. "We never polluted or contaminated our water, yet we're being held accountable to make sure we fix this. I think this is completely unfair."

About 100 aboriginal communities in Canada remained on drinking water advisories as of last month without adequate response from the federal government, according to the report.

"While $330 million in the 2008 budget was allocated to safe drinking water in First Nations communities over two years, the current government has backed away from the Kelowna Accord, which dedicated $5.1 billion to improving the socio-economic conditions and access to water for aboriginal people," the report says.

Fontaine said many aboriginals continue to face "startling" conditions that would shock many Canadians - for example, water contaminated by uranium or harmful bacteria.

Indian Affairs and Northern Development Minister Chuck Strahl said the federal government is making progress on improving drinking water standards, but he noted the report didn't necessarily capture that, as it focused on six communities with known problems.