A group that claims to speak on behalf of citizens of Kanesatake is calling for an independent commission of inquiry with the participation of the United Nations on the crisis in the Mohawk community of Kanesatake. NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice participated in a demonstration that brought together about 25 people in front of the office of the Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller Tuesday in Montreal. The MP brandished a container of gray and opaque water in front of the journalists, demanding a parliamentary commission concerning the alleged toxic discharges into a watercourse adjacent to the G&R Recycling site at the northwest end of Kanesatake.

A southwestern Manitoba First Nation is using $12 million in federal funding to ensure on-reserve members have access to potable water for generations to come. Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Marc Miller was in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, located 260 kilometres west of Winnipeg, Tuesday announcing $12 million in federal funding to help build water and wastewater system upgrades.

Indigenous Services Canada has issued a Boil Water Advisory to ensure the safety of the community. Copies of these orders can be found at rmwb.ca/water. At around 6:15 a.m. (May 19, 2023) the Janvier water treatment plant temporarily shut down causing a loss of pressure to the water distribution system. At approximately 8:30 a.m., the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB) was able to return the plant and distribution pumps to normal.

The Parkland College, Yorkton Tribal Council and Indigenous Services Canada have teamed together to bring a water and wastewater operators course to Indigenous communities. The 19-week course is called, Intro to Water Operators. The course is aimed to provide foundational training in the field of water treatment. It’s a hybrid of both in-person math classes and online classes taught by ATAP Infrastructure Management Ltd., which specializes in water treatment courses.

There are now nearly 30 Saskatchewan First Nations using the technology developed at Yellow Quill, with more in the works, according to Deon Hassler, a water technician and circuit rider for the File Hills-Qu’Appelle Tribal Council. Early adopters included Yellow Quill, George Gordon, Whitecap Dakota, Dakota Dunes, Kawacatoose, Poundmaker, Muskeg Lake, Witchikan Lake, Saulteaux, James Smith, Makwa Sahgaiehcan, Shoal Lake, Sturgeon Lake, Mistawasis, Kahkewistahaw, Kinistin and White Bear. “Bio filtration seems to be spreading across First Nations in Saskatchewan because it’s in line with the worldview of treating water with respect and treating organisms with respect,” says Zagozewski.

The SFNWA is a non-profit dedicated to developing sustainable clean water supplies and water management in our First Nations communities. If you go to their website sfnwa.ca, you can see the amazing work and commitment of this “grassroots” group, which has stepped into a very large gap created by the foot-dragging and denial behaviour of governments. The SFNWA deserves our words of encouragement and support (a small act of reconciliation), that I encourage you to direct through Rebecca Zagozewski, at ed@sfnwa.ca. If you are associated with a company that is involved in the “water industry,” let this group know that you support them … again a small act of reconciliation.

Rebecca Zagozewski is the executive director of the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association, a non-profit organization that works to build First Nations’ capacity to take care and control of their own water services. She says recruitment and retention of water treatment plant operators is a “real problem” on Saskatchewan First Nations, largely because First Nations often can’t pay operators competitive wages. That means some water operators are stuck in essential jobs feeling unsupported and with no replacement if anything goes wrong. Many First Nations operate in this state, with the safety of their drinking water reliant on just one or a few underpaid and overworked operators. “I know some operators that have been in the same position, operating the same water plants for 20 years, and never got a raise, never get vacation,” Zagozewski said.

Experts say there are contamination risks with the transport of water as well. “You could have contamination with the hose at the treatment plant, if it’s not properly guarded and disinfected. You could have contamination because the truck is dirty,” said Zagozewski. According to the 2018 First Nations Regional Health Survey, people were less likely to consider their water safe for drinking if it was trucked in. The survey, conducted by the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) and its regional partners, is the only First Nations-governed national health survey of First Nations reserve and Northern communities.

Rebecca Zagozewski, executive director with the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association, says cisterns can pose health risks to those who rely on them. She says the structures can have cracked lids, which allows all sorts of debris to get into them — including rats, mice, drowned puppies and garbage — and they’re often not cleaned properly. On top of that, she says the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association is concerned that there is no certification program for water truck drivers. The group wants to create such a program where drivers would have to be trained in how to keep the water safe and be held accountable if things go wrong. “Because right now there’s no accountability,” she says.

Rebecca Zagozewski, executive director of the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association, said she has seen contractors save on costs when building water treatment plants on reserves by using obsolete parts and failing to include maintenance manuals, ventilation or chemical rooms, and bathrooms. “Engineering companies will put in their bids obviously as low as they can go,” said Zagozewski.”