(Ottawa) The Liberal government tabled a much-anticipated bill Monday that aims to improve water quality in First Nations communities, improve collaboration on water protection and codify a new commission led by First Nations.
The long-promised bill, which Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu touts as the result of immense collaboration and knowledge sharing, would implement a new framework for water sources, water drinking water, wastewater and related infrastructure on First Nations lands.
Mme Hajdu wore a light blue sweater and blue ribbon skirt to a news conference on the bill on Parliament Hill.
“First Nations have been clear that they must have the tools and powers to protect their inherent right to clean water,” she told reporters outside the House of Commons.
“And this bill, today, is the first on a new path to legislating together. »
Assembly of Ontario First Nations Regional Chief Glen Hare, who appeared alongside Mr.me Hajdu, stressed that legislation is essential to maintain the unity of families.
He said teachers often call the Children’s Aid Society about parents who live in Indigenous communities and don’t have access to clean water, accusing them of neglect.
He asked all parties to support the bill “because we want our children (to be) clean like everyone else…Stop accusing our parents of not taking care of our loved ones.”
Mme Hajdu previously said the legislation she was working on was the closest to developing a law in collaboration with First Nations, although some chiefs have disputed that assertion, particularly those in Alberta.
The minister was asked on Monday if she would publish a list of First Nations and other organizations consulted for the bill.
She said all First Nations have received the bill, as well as a second draft based on consultations with communities.
She added that consultations would continue as the bill progressed through the legislative process, and that she “looked forward” to hearing from all stakeholders.
In 2015, the Liberals committed to ending all boil water advisories in First Nations communities by 2021 – a self-imposed deadline that has since passed , and which sparked criticism from First Nations.
Under the new law, drinking water quality and standards in First Nations communities would be determined jointly by the federal government and First Nations.
However, these standards should at least correspond to federal, provincial or territorial guidelines.
A new commission led by First Nations
The bill stipulates that the federal government commits to providing funding “comparable” to that provided by other levels of government off-reserve. And if this is not granted, the bill provides that First Nations can take their cases to court.
Mme Hajdu suggested this is intended to keep the funding model in place in perpetuity.
“This bill would enshrine that in law and make it a firm and everlasting commitment. »
A new First Nations-led water commission, promised by the bill, would monitor water in communities, help them get legal advice and make recommendations to the federal, provincial and territorial governments.
The law also opens the door for First Nations to negotiate shared jurisdiction with provinces and territories to manage and preserve water sources in what are known as water protection zones.
“There is an opportunity here for First Nations people to teach provinces and territories how to better work together to ensure we can protect this water source for generations to come,” said Ms.me Hajdu.
When asked Monday how the federal government could help manage the conflicting priorities of First Nations and other jurisdictions on how best to protect water, Ms.me Hajdu said she hopes they can get along.
“The government will support these consultations and collaboration, and I expect vigorous participation from the provinces and territories,” she said.
Greater Indigenous participation beneficial
Dawn Martin-Hill, a professor at McMaster University in Ontario, said increased Indigenous participation would be a good thing.
“Most of the people who care for, monitor and manage our waters are not indigenous and do not consult us about their findings or initiatives,” said Ms.me Martin-Hill, who leads the Ohneganos Ohnegahdę:gyo Indigenous Water Research Program.
But if people who live nearby were able to manage the waters themselves, she said, they could clean them themselves and make decisions about what goes in.
Perhaps the sturgeon that were once abundant in the Grand River, which runs through her community of Six Nations in southern Ontario, would also decide to return, she said.
The bill comes more than a year after the federal government repealed the First Nations Safe Drinking Water Actwhich dated from the Conservative government of Stephen Harper.
The Harper government said at the time that the Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act, 2013 was intended to support the development of federal regulations that would improve First Nations’ access to drinking water and treatment. efficient wastewater.
However, many First Nations argued the legislation was ineffective and dangerous, citing concerns about a lack of sustainable funding and violation of constitutional rights.
In December 2021, the Federal Court and the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench decided to approve the $8 billion class action settlement.
The settlement was intended to provide $1.5 billion in compensation to all First Nations and their members who were subject to drinking water advisories lasting at least one year, between November 1995 and June 2021.
He also devoted 400 million to the creation of a fund for the economic and cultural recovery of First Nations, allocated at least 6 billion to help support access to drinking water in First Nations communities and promised the new bill which was finally tabled on Monday.
Mme Martin-Hill called the whole process an exercise in “how colonialism works.”
“They are suppressing and appropriating lands and waters, suppressing your authority. You fight back and spend a lot of time and money in court doing what you can, and then you get some movement, she explained. It’s exhausting. »
NDP MP Lori Idlout, her party’s spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous relations, said she was “cautiously optimistic” about the bill tabled Monday.
“But I will examine it with a fine-tooth comb. »