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Taralee Beardy never thought she would see her community get a safer source of water, but a national $8 billion drinking water class-action settlement affecting First Nations is set to change that. Beardy, the chief of Tataskweyak Cree Nation in northern Manitoba, says the construction of a new 40-kilometre pipeline and water treatment plant for her community is set to begin next spring, meaning Tataskweyak's six-year boil water advisory will be coming to an end.
Clean water for all has been discussed for many years as a basic human right. Unfortunately many indigenous communities in Canada are put on a boil water advisory every year due to unclean water conditions. According to the government of Canada website, there are currently 28 Indigenous communities that are on long-term boil advisories throughout the country.
A new copper plaque on the boulevard along Broadway at Donald Street aims to educate Winnipeggers about the source of their drinking water and the community surrounding it — Shoal Lake 40 First Nation. "For years Winnipeg members, their citizens, were able to … turn on their tap," said Chief Kevin Redsky of Shoal Lake 40 First Nation at the unveiling of the plaque on Friday. The plaque pays tribute to Shoal Lake as the source of city water since 1919, when the Winnipeg aqueduct was completed. It explains how the project impacted the First Nation community and its relationship with water. "The 24-year boil water advisory, the sickness created bathing our own children, not being able to drink safe water," Redsky said.
Oneida Nation of the Thames First Nation (ONTFN) has been under a boil water advisory since 2019. However, the first steps in the slow process of changing that are expected shortly. “There is an agreement coming, it's just at the table now,” said ONTFN Chief Todd Cornelius. “We're expecting to inform our community soon of the agreement.” Cornelius was tight lipped about the timeline, but CTV News has learned an announcement is imminent.
Luann Smith will be paying close attention to what Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu has to say on Monday about the federal government's willingness to fund a pipeline that will bring clean drinking water to Oneida Nation of the Thames. Smith, 67, is a lifelong resident of Oneida, a community that has been under a boil water advisory since 2019. Hajdu is scheduled to be a guest on Monday's edition of London Morning and will speak with host Rebecca Zandbergen about the situation.
As a years-long boil water advisory continues to drag out, there’s cautious optimism that clean water will be flowing to residents of Oneida Nation of the Thames. But it won’t be any time soon. In fact it could be a number of years yet before the community can lift its boil water advisory. "Over the holidays I heard from a lot of community members feeling a sense of hopelessness, but also a sense of guilt," said Oneida Councillor Brandon Doxtator, who oversees environmental issues for the community." Just taking a five minute shower has caused community members to be worried about their part of exacerbating the problem," he said.
A boil water advisory in Sachigo Lake First Nation that had been in effect for four years was officially lifted last week. The advisory, which was upgraded to a long-term advisory in 2019, was rescinded after upgrades to the water treatment system were finished. The work included an expansion of the wastewater lagoon. Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu is expected to address the matter in the House of Commons on Wednesday, “That brings us to 31 boil-water advisories left to lift nationally, 136 since we took office that have been lifted,” Hajdu said in prepared comments that were submitted to NWONewswatch.
A boil water advisory that was affecting between eight and 12 households in Mînî Thnî has been lifted as of Oct. 15. Indigenous Services Canada posted the boil water advisory Oct. 11 as a precautionary measure in lieu of planned maintenance at the East Morley Water Treatment Plant, separate from the main plant supplying water to the townsite. Simon Sihota, regional manager of environmental public health for Indigenous Services Canada in Alberta, said the work involved replacing older pipes and distribution headers within the treatment plant, which involved taking the water plant offline and depressurizing the system.
Water is an extremely important part of Indigenous culture which makes the fact that 27 Indigenous communities across Canada are living with a boil water advisory while countless others struggle for access to clean water that much more devastating. “Water is very important to Indigenous people,” Beverley Maracle, a resident of Six Nations of the Grand River, told CityNews. “Water is medicine to Indigenous people and we need water for life. So water is life.”
