Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller confirmed the Trudeau government will not meet its pledge to lift all drinking water advisories in First Nations communities across Canada by March 2021.
Miller said the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led to delays in upgrading or completing water systems and also created supply chain problems. He said some First Nations reserves have restricted who is allowed into the communities to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“While there have been many reasons for the delay, I want to state as clearly as possible that ultimately I bear the responsibility for this and I have the responsibility and duty to get this done,” Miller told reporters Wednesday.
Indigenous Services Canada has said that 97 boil-water advisories have been lifted since 2016, while 59 remain in place in 41 communities.
In a fall economic statement Monday, the Liberal government pledged to invest $1.5 billion this year to work toward lifting all long-term drinking water advisories in Indigenous communities, on top of $2.1 billion already committed since 2016.
Miller said the money is going to support three key areas to ensure daily operations and maintenance of water infrastructure on reserves, and prevent future water advisories.
The funding will include $616.3 million over six years to help train water treatment plant operators and help retain qualified workers, while $553.4 million will go to help prevent future drinking water advisories, and $309.8 million will pay for work halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other project delays.
Feds pledge to fix Neskantaga First Nation’s long-standing water crisis
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to end all long-term boil-water advisories within five years during the 2015 campaign, but indicated in October that this commitment likely wouldn’t be met amid the ongoing pandemic.
The decision to back away from the commitment to end boil-water advisories comes as over 250 residents of Neskantaga First Nation in northern Ontario, which has been under a boil-water advisory for 25 years, were forced to be evacuated from their homes following the discovery of an oily sheen in its reservoir.
Residents are still being housed in Thunder Bay and have been calling on the federal government to restore 24-hour access to water and help them return home.