Open letter calls on federal Liberals to recognize water as a human right

The following open letter calls on members of the Liberal Party of Canada to back a resolution to recognize water as a human right. The party will hold its biennial convention in Vancouver from April 30 to May 2.

April 28, 2009

Dear members of the Liberal Party of Canada,

We congratulate the Liberal Party of Canada (Ontario) for putting forward a resolution calling for a national water policy that bans bulk water exports, establishes enforceable clean water standards, calls for a conservation strategy, demands the exclusion of water from NAFTA and recognizes water as a human right.

As representatives of environmental, labour and social justice organizations, we are writing to urge all members of the Liberal Party to vote in favour of this significant resolution at the upcoming convention in Vancouver.

Numerous reports show that Canada is not immune to the global water crisis. Environment Canada warns that only one per cent of our fresh water is renewable although 60 per cent of our GDP is tied directly to the use of fresh water. Several parts of the country have been affected by drought and nearly a quarter of our municipalities have faced water shortages in recent years.

It is time for Canada to enact a national water policy to address urgent water issues and the adoption of this resolution would be an important message on the need for legislative safeguards to protect Canada’s water.

The recognition of water as a human right is long overdue.

In April 2008, the Canadian Medical Association Journal reported that 1,766 boil-water advisories were in effect in Canadian municipalities. Several communities have endured drinking water advisories for years, and 90 Canadians die from water-borne diseases every year.

Indigenous communities in Canada have been affected disproportionately by the water crisis. Despite repeated pledges to ensure they have access to clean drinking water, water is too often contaminated in First Nations communities. Last November, Health Canada reported 103 drinking water advisories in First Nations communities. In addition, Industrial water pollution is rampant in many Indigenous communities due to industrial expansion, which is either directly on land to which Indigenous communities lay claim or upstream from where they live.

The adoption of a national water policy that recognizes water as a human right will ensure that all people living in Canada are legally entitled to safe, clean drinking water and water for sanitation in sufficient quantities, and that inequalities in access are addressed immediately.

Finally, if adopted within the Liberal Party platform, we hope the resolution’s call to protect water from commoditization will extend to include measures to ensure that municipal water services remain in public hands.

We call on members of the Liberal Party to support this very important resolution.

Sincerely,

Maude Barlow, The Council of Canadians, (Senior advisor to the President of the UN General Assembly)
David Brooks, Friends of the Earth Canada
Tony Clarke, Polaris Institute
Stephen Hazel, Sierra Club of Canada
Sarah Kambites, United Nations Association of Canada
Abrahim Khan, Trinity College, University of Toronto
Tony Maas, World Wildlife Fund
Clayton Thomas- Mueller Indigenous Environmental Network
David Schindler, University of Alberta