The Council of Canadians has joined with almost 50 organizations and high-profile individuals in Alberta to formally launch the Our Water is Not for Sale campaign, a broad network of environmental groups, First Nations, social justice organizations, farmers, land owners, small businesses, municipal politicians, academics and members of the faith community opposed to the provincial government’s plans to introduce legislation to create a province-wide, deregulated water market.
The network released an open letter in opposition to water markets, calling on the government to fully investigate non-market solutions to the growing water crisis in the province, and to hold broad and meaningful consultation with Albertans and First Nations governments before implementing any changes to the current Water Act.
The open letter can be signed by organizations and individuals in Alberta on the network’s website at www.ourwaterisnotforsale.com. The website also contains background information, additional action steps people can take and experiences from other jurisdictions that have implemented water markets.
Statement by the Council of Canadians
The Council of Canadians submitted a statement to the Alberta government regarding an application by the Eastern Irrigation District (EID) to eliminate restrictions on its water licence that currently prevent it from being used for any purpose other than irrigation. The EID wants to be able to sell water rights for industrial and commercial purposes without public oversight. Our submission can be read here. April 16, 2010
Alternative Water Futures
The need for non-market solutions to Alberta's water crisis
Featuring Jeremy Schmidt,
Department of Geography, University of Western Ontario,
Author of the Parkland Institute research report, Alternative Water Futures in Alberta.
This event took place in Edmonton on December 5, 2011 as part of a 5-city speaking tour.
Presented by the Our Water Is Not For Sale network, with support from the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Council of Canadians, Parkland Institute, Public Interest Alberta and Sierra Club Prairie. Thanks to David Buchanan of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees for filming and editing this presentation.
For more information on Our Water Is Not For Sale and the campaign to protect Alberta's water, please visit www.ourwaterisnotforsale.com.
Jeremy J. Schmidt is a Trudeau Scholar and PhD candidate in the Department of Geography at the University of Western Ontario. He holds a MA in Geography (McGill) and two undergraduate degrees (Lethbridge; Prairie) with majors in geography, philosophy, theology and wilderness leadership. He is the co-editor of Water Ethics: Foundational Readings for Students and Professionals and has been a board member of the Canadian Water Resources Association (CWRA) since 2009. He has served on working groups for ethics and water management with UNESCO and for a pan-Canadian water strategy with the CWRA. He has been an invited participant of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to the Religion, Science and Environment Symposium. His graduate work includes studies of global biogeochemistry, environmental economics, and resource management. His doctoral research examines water governance, ethics and environmental management in Alberta: www.waterethic.ca.
TAKE ACTION
ACTION ALERT: Stop the introduction of a water market in the BC Water Act!
A new provincial Water Act is expected to be introduced in 2012. Tell the BC government that you do not want the introduction of a water market to allocate water under the new Water Act. Ask the government to support an allocation system that provides hierarchy of use prioritizing ecological and social needs.
Let’s make sure Minister Renner hears from thousands more Albertans!
Phone Renner’s office at (780) 427-2391 or email him at medicine.hat@assembly.ab.ca and tell him that he should be talking to Albertans, not multinational water executives, about the future of Alberta’s water.
Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow was in Edmonton on October 26, 2010 to speak at a public forum titled ‘The Fight for Water: Challenging Water Markets in Alberta’. Part 1 (below) | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
AUDIO: Maude Barlow on CBC Radio One's alberta@noon, Tuesday, October 26, 2010. She addresses the water crisis facing Alberta and the problems with the push for water markets in the province. Right- click here to download the podcast. The segment with Maude Barlow begins at 25:25.
Interview with Scott Harris, Prairiee Regional Organizer for the Council of Canadians during Public Interest Alberta's 4th Annual Advocacy Conference, Worth Fighting For: Public Solutions and Our Common Future, April 2010.
The Council of Canadians has joined with almost 50 organizations and high-profile individuals in Alberta to formally launch the Our Water is Not for Sale campaign, a broad network of environmental groups, First Nations, social justice organizations, farmers, land owners, small businesses, municipal politicians, academics and members of the faith community opposed to the provincial government’s plans to introduce legislation to create a province-wide, deregulated water market.