Quantifiable progress of the First Nations Water Management Strategy, 2001–2013: Ready for regulation?

First Nations communities in Canada are disproportionately affected by poor water quality. As one example, many communities have been living under boil water advisories for decades, but government interventions to date have had limited impact. This paper examines the importance of using Indigenous research methodologies to address current water issues affecting First Nations. The work is part of larger project applying decolonizing methodologies to Indigenous water governance. Because Indigenous epistemologies are a central component of Indigenous research methods, our analysis begins with presenting a theoretical framework for understanding Indigenous water relations. We then consider three cases of innovative Indigenous research initiatives that demonstrate how water research and policy initiatives can adopt a more Indigenous-centered approach in practice. Cases include (1) an Indigenous Community-Based Health Research Lab that follows a two-eyed seeing philosophy (Saskatchewan); (2) water policy research that uses collective knowledge sharing frameworks to facilitate respectful, non-extractive conversations among Elders and traditional knowledge holders (Ontario); and (3) a long-term community-based research initiative on decolonizing water that is practicing reciprocal learning methodologies (British Columbia, Alberta). By establishing new water governance frameworks informed by Indigenous research methods, the authors hope to promote innovative, adaptable solutions, rooted in Indigenous epistemologies.

Section: First Nations Water Crisismentioning

confidence: 99%

Shifting the Framework of Canadian Water Governance through Indigenous Research Methods: Acknowledging the Past with an Eye on the Future

Arsenault

Diver

McGregor

et al. 2018

“…The Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act, Bill S-8 [11] was enacted in 2013 by the Federal Government to provide a legislative framework for provision of safe drinking water within First Nations. However, many First Nations opposed the legislation, as Bill S-8 gives the Federal government sweeping powers to enforce water quality standards in First Nations communities and to enact regulations with respect to operator training and certification, water and wastewater systems and water quality standards and monitoring [12]. Lack of adequate consultation and resources to identify the potential impacts of legislation were identified by Chiefs of Ontario [13].…”

Section: Issues Of Jurisdictionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is great concern among First Nations that Bill S-8 is unconstitutional and is in violation of Treaty rights. Bill S-8 grants the federal government the right to enforce standards without mandated allocation of funding to support the human resources or technical capacity that are required to meet these targets [12].…”

Section: Issues Of Jurisdictionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Source Water Protection Planning for Ontario First Nations Communities: Case Studies Identifying Challenges and Outcomes

Collins

McGregor

Allen³

et al. 2017

Abstract:After the Walkerton tragedy in 2000, where drinking water contamination left seven people dead and many suffering from chronic illness, the Province of Ontario, Canada implemented policies to develop Source Water Protection (SWP) plans. Under the Clean Water Act (2006), thirty-six regional Conservation Authorities were mandated to develop watershed-based SWP plans under 19 Source Protection Regions. Most First Nations in Ontario are outside of these Source Protection Regions and reserve lands are under Federal jurisdiction. This paper explores how First Nations in Ontario are attempting to address SWP to improve drinking water quality in their communities even though these communities are not part of the Ontario SWP framework. The case studies highlight the gap between the regulatory requirements of the Federal and Provincial governments and the challenges for First Nations in Ontario from lack of funding to implement solutions to address the threats identified in SWP planning. This analysis of different approaches taken by Ontario First Nations shows that the Ontario framework for SWP planning is not an option for the majority of First Nations communities, and does not adequately address threats originating on reserve lands. First Nations attempting to address on-reserve threats to drinking water are using a variety of resources and approaches to develop community SWP plans. However, a common theme of all the cases surveyed is a lack of funding to support implementing solutions for the threats identified by the SWP planning process. Federal government initiatives to address the chronic problem of boil water advisories within Indigenous communities do not recognize SWP planning as a cost-effective tool for improving drinking water quality.

“…In summary, the federal government has historically controlled resource development and land use on lands reserved for Indigenous peoples without their participation and largely without their input. Decisions related to land and water management on reserved lands are typically evaluated strictly against administrative criteria, and even then the criteria used change over time, according to the whims of program managers [101]. Local knowledge holders, as well as Indigenous perspectives on appropriate relations with the land, have long been ignored.…”

Section: Political Ecology and Colonialism In Canadamentioning

confidence: 99%

“We Don’t Drink the Water Here”: The Reproduction of Undrinkable Water for First Nations in Canada

Baijius

Patrick

2019

First Nation communities in Canada are disproportionately plagued by undrinkable water and insufficient household sanitation. In addition, water resource management in First Nation communities has long been a technocratic and scientific mission controlled by state-led authorities. There has been limited engagement of First Nations in decision-making around water management and water governance. As such, problems associated with access to drinkable water and household sanitation are commonly positioned as hydrological or environmental problems (flood or drought) to be fixed by technical and engineering solutions. This apolitical reading has been criticized for not addressing the root cause of the First Nation water problem, but instead, of reproducing it. In this paper, an approach using political ecology will tease out key factors contributing to the current water problem in many First Nation communities. Using case study research set in source water protection planning, this paper explains how persistent colonial practices of the state continue to reproduce undrinkable water and insufficient household sanitation. Solutions to this ‘water problem’ require greater attention to First Nations water governance capacity and structures.