The American Southwest is running out of freshwater. Recently, the Biden administration proposed to up-end legal rules and impose cuts to water allotments from the shrinking Colorado River. In arid southern Alberta, we understand the vulnerability. A century ago, the International Joint Commission — the body that rules on how Americans and Canadians co-manage water systems along the 49th parallel — grew out of a bitter dispute between settlers in Montana and Alberta over access to water.
The Last Drop: Water Researcher’s Speaker Series
If you have an interest in water sustainability issues including drinking water and sanitation, water governance, and international climate issues, this speaker series is for you! The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) and was named the UNAI Hub for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: Clean Water and Sanitization, in 2018. Starting September 19th, the UM UNAI Hub will be hosting six virtual presentations from various UM researchers.
The risks facing Canada’s drinking water
Canada has an abundance of water for its size: It has 0.5 per cent of the world’s population but seven per cent of the world’s renewable freshwater supply.
From a global perspective, most Canadians are lucky, but the messages that emanate from academic and popular literature often paint an unsettling picture.