In 2002-2003, Treasury Board authorized Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) and Health Canada (HC) to implement the First Nations Water Management Strategy (FNWMS or the Strategy) starting in 2003-2004. The authorization expires in March 2008. This report has been prepared to fulfill a Treasury Board requirement to complete a summative evaluation of the First Nations Water Management Strategy to inform renewal of the Strategy's authorities in March 2008. The Strategy aims to address urgent issues related to drinking water and waste water in First Nations communities. The Strategy is based on a multi-barrier approach, recognizing that safe drinking water results from several factors: source protection, water and wastewater treatment facilities and operations, operator training and certification, standards and guidelines, and community capacity. Budget 2003 committed an additional $600M over five years to the Strategy: $115.9M administered by HC and $484.1M by INAC. This funding represents up to approximately 25-30 percent of total INAC funding devoted to water and wastewater systems in First Nations communities.

This interdisciplinary book brings philosophers and non-philosophers to the table to address questions of water ethics, specifically in terms of how moral questions inform decision making around water security at local, national, and international scales. Water security, which pertains to the experience of assured access to clean water, is a broad concept that intersects human rights, politics, economics, law, legislation, public health, trade, agriculture, and energy. Decisions made at each of these intersection points have ramifications for human well being, especially for the populations that are marginalized in a societal and political sense. In this book, the ethical dimensions of decision-making at those intersection points are explored, and real-world examples are used to tease out some key insights. It charts how ethical consideration can help shape a future in which everyone will be water secure.

This document describes the roles and responsibilities of First Nations, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), Health Canada, and Environment Canada in providing safe and reliable drinking water and effective wastewater services in First Nation communities according to the First Nations Water Management Strategy. Key initiatives of the strategy and their impact on water and wastewater management are discussed.

Indigenous Water and Drought Management in a Changing World presents a series of global case studies that examine how different Indigenous groups are dealing with various water management challenges and finding creative and culturally specific ways of developing solutions to these challenges. With contributions from Indigenous and non-Indigenous academics, scientists, and water management experts, this volume provides an overview of key water management challenges specific to Indigenous peoples, proposes possible policy solutions both at the international and national levels, and outlines culturally relevant tools for assessing vulnerability and building capacity. In recent decades, global climate change (particularly drought) has brought about additional water management challenges, especially in drought-prone regions where increasing average temperatures and diminishing precipitation are leading to water crises. Because their livelihoods are often dependent on the land and water, Indigenous groups native to those regions have direct insights into the localized impacts of global environmental change, and are increasingly developing their own adaptation and mitigation strategies and solutions based on local Indigenous knowledge (IK). Many Indigenous groups around the globe are also faced with mounting pressure from extractive industries like mining and forestry, which further threaten their water resources. The various cases presented in Indigenous Water and Drought Management in a Changing World provide much-needed insights into the particular issues faced by Indigenous peoples in preserving their water resources, as well as actionable information that can inform future scientific research and policymaking aimed at developing more integrated, region-specific, and culturally relevant solutions to these critical challenges. - Includes diverse case studies from around the world - Provides cutting-edge perspectives about Indigenous peoples' water management issues and IK-based solutions - Presents maps for most case studies along with a summary box to conclude each chapter

The drinking water contamination tragedy in Walkerton, Ontario during the spring of 2000 led to many changes in water management for the province. Among these changes has been the increased use of the multiple barrier approach (MBA) to safe drinking water as the basis of water management for communities throughout Ontario. The MBA is also used in the management of water for First Nations communities throughout Ontario and Canada. Literature on water quality management for First Nations suggests that despite these changes, many communities continue to face challenges for ensuring the safety and quality of their drinking water supplies. Fort William First Nation, Gull Bay First Nation, and Mattagami First Nation, were selected for this study in order to investigate the use of the MBA in these communities.