While the Canadian government has claimed to have solved 26 long term drinking water advisories on 22 First Nations, the reality it seems is not so.

While 14 communities agree with that assessment, many of them still face major water issues, including problems with leaky, poorly designed systems and a lack of government funding for water operators.

Most of the problems were solved via government funding, but it seems that the department of Indigenous and Northern Affairs will not confirm what was spent under the Conservatives versus the Liberals.

Added to this, it seems that the number of communities affected has actually increased, making it rather difficult for Justin Trudeau’s government to actually deliver on the promise made in 2015 to solve all drinking water advisories on First Nations within five years.

In July 2015 there were 114 First Nations under 159 drinking water advisories listed by Health Canada and the B.C. First Nations Health Authority across Canada; as of July 31, 2017, there were a total of 121 First Nations under 172 drinking water advisories across Canada, including B.C.

This number does not include advisories in the Saskatoon Tribal Council, which deals with its own water, or those of other water insecure Indigenous communities for which the government contends it is not responsible.

Recent fact-checking with the 22 communities on the department’s list revealed that 14 communities do have clean drinking water, some of them for the first time since 2008, but that of those, there are still three communities that are facing serious ongoing issues that could threaten the future status.

Water plant operator Dave Craig confirmed that Pic Mobert First Nation in northwestern Ontario finally has clean water:

“It’s a welcome relief for everybody, there’s no doubt about that. The people are elated — they’ve been carrying jugs of water for more than a decade. First Nations in the north are ignored — out of sight, out of mind.”

Even so, Craig says there are ongoing issues, including the fact that the water distribution system has major leaks and is missing equipment.

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