The Council of Canadians Peterborough-Kawarthas chapter hosted Maude Barlow last night for a public forum on her new book on the water crisis in Canada.
As the event was about to begin, Barlow tweeted, “Peterborough town hall on water – packed!”
Chapter activist Roy Brady tells us, “We had an attendance of at least 250 people, perhaps more. Fourteen organizations had tables for resources and sharing ideas, including four student/youth groups. The Peterborough Examiner did an interview, Maude also did CBC Radio’s Ontario Morning, plus a couple of other outlets provided regular outlines prior to the event.”
The Peterborough Examiner reports, “Water activist Maude Barlow wants everyone to know that they have a role to play when it comes to bringing changes to better protect our most precious resource. That’s what the author of Boiling Point: Government Neglect, Corporate Abuse and Canada’s Water Crisis hoped folks would take away from her Tuesday night speech on behalf of the Peterborough and Kawarthas chapter of the Council of Canadians. ‘You must demand of governments that they do their job’, she said prior to the event at Adam Scott Collegiate, where she encouraged involvement to demand better legislation and better management to enforce it.”
The article adds, “The voluntary national chairwoman of the Council of Canadians said she is working to dispel the common myth that we have an abundance of water in this country, something most of us learned while growing up and take for granted. While 20 per cent of the world’s fresh water is contained in Canadian lakes, that statistic is inaccurate because only about six per cent of the world’s renewable water supply is within our borders, Barlow said, adding that we don’t take care of it. Canada, and the rest of the planet, has a water crisis on its hands, she said. ‘This is something we really have to deal with.'”
The news report then notes, “The author spoke about how government, particularly the federal government, has “given up” on its responsibility when it comes to protecting water. The Stephen Harper government, in 2012, passed three pieces of legislation – the Fisheries Act, Navigable Waters Protection Act and Environmental Assessment Act – and as a result, 90 per cent of lakes and rivers are unprotected by federal law, Barlow said. The council is pushing for re-instatement of the legislation and encouraging citizens to support the same by speaking out via social media.”
And after referencing our concerns about water pollution, a receding water supply, the drinking water crisis in First Nations, the bottled water industry, the corporate abuse of water, and fracking, the article highlights, “The council has a plan, with specifics, on how several groups can come together to ensure groundwater is better protected, she said. The key is to put water at the centre of all policy, Barlow explained. That means, with every decision we make, asking ourselves what the impact on water will be. If it is negative, that means going back to the drawing board.”
The Boiling Point event last night also included an opening prayer by Curve Lake Elder Shirley Williams, a drum song by a local Indigenous group of Janet McCue and Dewe’iganog Nagamog, a presentation by a local Indigenous youth group Youth 4 Water, a moderated question and answer period, and a book signing.
To date, Barlow has taken the book tour to Ottawa (September 20), Kingston (September 21), Guelph (September 22), Toronto (September 23), Vancouver (September 29), Calgary (September 30), Belleville (October 3), St. John’s (October 14), Saskatoon (October 18) and now Peterborough (November 1). The book tour will next be in Barrie (November 7), London (November 9), Renfrew (November 17), Chilliwack (November 21), and then Winnipeg (November 24).
As in Peterborough last night, many of these book tour events are being organized by Council of Canadians chapters. In the acknowledgements section of her book, Barlow says, “Right across the country, tireless environmentalists, public sector workers and First Nations and community activists work day after day to protect water and local community rights. A special shout-out to the Council of Canadians chapters right across Canada, whose members give so freely of their time and talent.”
Copies of Boiling Point can be purchased at these book tour events or online through the publisher.
