“BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ON FIRST NATIONS DRINKING WATER BILL” says Hughes
Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing MP Catol Hughes
OTTAWA, ON – The Conservative’s can’t just legislate themselves free of the government’s primary responsibilities to First Nations says Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing MP, Carol Hughes.
Hughes was speaking to a Senate bill that will unilaterally impose regulations on First Nations for the delivery of and disposal of water. Those regulations will differ depending on which province a community is located in. Hughes argued the legislation has many requirements for First Nation communities to meet, but comes up short in helping to develop the infrastructure needed to do the job.
“What this bill does not do is adequately address the needs of First Nations to build capacity in order to develop and administer water and wastewater systems on their lands,” said Hughes.
Hughes noted the bill was not drafted in consultation with First Nations and limits the responsibility of the federal government should things go wrong under the new regulatory framework. She also showed how it offloads problematic systems onto First Nations and forces them to waste money on their upkeep even if they would rather spend money on replacement systems that could do the job better.
It’s just a case of, sorry, you’re stuck with it – and it’s a money pit,” said Hughes. “In that respect this is a recipe for failure.”
Hughes spoke about the challenge for many First Nations when it comes to clean drinking water as a problem that might surprise many people considering how rich Canada is and how seemingly abundant fresh water is.
“While it might be tempting to think that struggle is the stuff of distant and impoverished nations it is more difficult to admit this is a challenge in many Canadian communities,” said Hughes. “It is even more difficult to admit how many of those – in fact a disproportionately large number of them – are First Nations communities.”
She concluded by urging the government to get back to the drawing board to work with First Nations and come up with good regulations that will help deliver a consistent supply of clean, affordable water to more communities.
