NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh wants the Liberal government to pay the cost of solving the Iqaluit water emergency.
The 8,000 people who live in the capital of Nunavut have been unable to drink tap water since October 12, when it was discovered to contain fuel.
Speaking at a press conference in Iqaluit on Tuesday, Singh mentioned that the territorial and municipal governments estimate that it will take $ 180 million to permanently fix the problem.
According to Singh, Iqaluit’s water infrastructure must be permanently improved to prevent a similar emergency from happening again.
The City has indicated that an underground tank dating from 1962 is probably the source of the fuel that left its mark in the city’s water.
Residents of Iqaluit were able to obtain bottled water at various sites in the city or treated water pumped from a nearby river by members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
While in Iqaluit, Singh and Nunavut NDP MP Lori Idlout plan to meet with City officials and help distribute water to residents.
“If there was a water crisis of this nature in any other major city in Canada… what would the federal government do? He would act immediately to fix the problem, ”Singh said.
The City said the fuel had accumulated over time in a raw water tank at its water treatment plant and was discovered in a separate tank.
At a council meeting Monday night, engineers from Winnipeg, hired by the City, said the underground site was being cleaned up.
Engineers have estimated that water tests have been found adequate since Oct. 24, but the Government of Nunavut has yet to perform its own tests before the no-drink order is lifted.
Charles Goss, one of the engineers, said the spill could have happened weeks or years ago and residents would have smelled fuel in the water, even at very low concentrations.
“There isn’t a long history of people drinking contaminated water,” he added.
The City said residents began reporting the smell of fuel in tap water as early as October 2.
City councilors also voted in favor of spending $ 100,000 to purchase an indoor bypass tank to replace the contaminated tank.