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Water Issues Across Canada: A snapshot prepared by the Council of Canadians
Members of Parliament know that citizens are concerned about Canada’s water. In 2004, an Ipsos Reid poll commissioned by the Council of Canadians found that 97 per cent of Canadians support the call for a National Water Policy. In 2005, the Prime Minister’s Office received 120,000 letters, emails and phone calls on the subject of bulk water exports and water privatization – the largest volume of communications on any issue after same-sex marriage. Here is a snapshot of the pressing issues affecting Canada’s water in 2008: Canada has not mapped its water supply. Documents prepared by Natural Resources Canada and obtained under Access to Information prove that Canada’s water supply is under threat from bulk water exports, climate change and high domestic use. The documents show that it would take 30 years to adequately map Canada’s water supply. In August of 2007, the water levels in the Great Lakes reached historic lows. Canada does not have a ban on bulk water exports. Despite the federal government’s claims, Canada’s so-called ban on bulk water exports is purely voluntary (and therefore virtually useless), because it can be broken at any time by any province. Meanwhile, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) recognizes water as a “good,” a “service” and an “investment” – which means that once Canada begins exports of fresh water to the U.S., the tap can never be turned off. Eighty per cent of Canadians strongly oppose bulk water exports. Our government should listen. The House of Commons agrees that NAFTA threatens water. In June 2007, the Standing Committee on International Trade tabled a motion recommending that the federal government “begin talks with its American and Mexican counterparts to exclude water from the scope of NAFTA.” It was supported by all parties except the Conservatives. The SPP puts water on the table. The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP) has opened the possibility of water being negotiated as part of trade agreements. In April 2007, business leaders from Canada, the U.S. and Mexico met behind closed doors as part of the North American Futures 2025 project, which featured talks of “water consumption, water transfers and artificial diversion of bulk water” with the goal of achieving “joint optimum utilization of the available water.” This occurred within the context of the SPP, which seeks to harmonize environmental regulations across the three countries – without consulting Parliament or the public. Even a prominent Conservative Senator agrees that Canada’s water needs protection. Senator Pat Carney recently introduced a Senate bill that seeks to ban the commercial export of Canada’s water through an amendment to the International Boundary Waters Treaty Act. Carney, the Mulroney trade minister who helped negotiate the 1988 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, and who denied that it and its successor NAFTA put Canada’s water in jeopardy, now acknowledges that these deals do expose Canadian water to the risk of bulk export. The Liberals are building a water platform. The Liberal Party is in the midst of crafting a policy that it says will beef up the government’s management and protection of water. The party has also tabled a proposal for a new Water Stewardship Minister, who could help bring order to a maze of more than 20 departments that set federal policies affecting water. The Bloc Québécois wants water excluded from NAFTA. Last spring, the Bloc introduced a motion to the Standing Committee on International Trade that recommended that the government quickly begin talks with its American and Mexican counterparts to exclude water from the scope of NAFTA. It passed in June 2007 with support from all of the parties except the Conservatives. The NDP has introduced a motion on a national water policy. Toronto NDP MP Peggy Nash introduced a motion in March 2007 calling for a national water strategy including federal standards, a ban on bulk water exports and Canada’s signature on a United Nations covenant declaring clean water a basic human right. She also wants to ensure water is excluded from any current and future trade agreements. Water infrastructure is crumbling. The Canadian Federation of Municipalities reported at the end of 2007 that national infrastructure is “near collapse” and that a $123 billion injection is needed immediately to address the crisis, including $35 billion for water services alone. The Harper government responded by saying that it is not in the “pothole business,” flippantly ignoring municipalities’ desperate need for new resources. The Conservatives are all about P3s. While the feds may not be in the pothole business, they sure are in the public-private partnership business. In November, the Conservatives unveiled a $1.25 billion Public Private Partnerships Fund, which seeks to “support innovative projects that provide an alternative to traditional government infrastructure procurement” (emphasis ours) and “facilitate a broader use of P3s in Canadian infrastructure projects.” All projects seeking $50 million or more in federal contributions through the Border Crossings Fund and the Building Canada Fund will “be required to assess and consider the viability of a P3 option.” To learn more about the threats to Canada’s water and the Council of Canadians’ vision for a National Water Policy, visit www.canadians.org/water. |
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Call 1-800-387-7177, or email inquiries@canadians.org, for more information on how you can support The Council of Canadians' water campaign. |
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updated
February 26, 2008
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We are in the midst of a crucial political moment in the fight to protect Canada’s water. All four major parties opposing the government are calling for a ban on bulk water exports and stronger environmental protections for the water in Canada’s lakes, oceans and rivers. Even prominent Conservative politicians are admitting that Canada’s water is under threat, due to trade agreements like NAFTA and the SPP. The question is, how much pressure will it take before the Harper government finally takes action?
