Stealing Happy Hours: The Myth of Water Abundance in Canada

Tonight I spent the first of three water-themed events I will attend in the next week. It was put on by the Sierra Club of Canada's Ottawa chapter at St. Paul's University and it was entitled The Myth of Water Abundance in Canada.

The rundown:

MC Adrian Harewood, CBC Radio

Presentation by Maude Barlow, Global Water Activist, Council of Canadians
Published author: Blue Gold, Blue Covenant

Panel Discussion:
Stephen Hazell, Executive Director
Maude Barlow, Chair, Council of Canadians
Meredith Brown, Executive Director, Ottawa Riverkeepers
Clive Doucet, City of Ottawa Councillor, Capital Ward

Some notes:

One of the causes of climate change has been the changes we have caused to the hydrologic cycle
China is creating deserts the size of Rhode Island every year by draining watersheds
Hot spots are being found around the world now (areas running out of water) - Middle East, Australia, 22 countries in Africa, SouthWest United States, Mexico City, India, Northern China...)
Canada's last water legislation at a federal level was the NAtional Water Act of 1970
Water is a tradeable good (i.e.: private commodity) in NAFTA, where there is a proportional sharing agreement so hypothetically corporations could sue if we ever restricted their water usage
Nestle (and other companies across the country, and mostly around the Great Lakes) are getting water permits and taking water out at insane levels -at only the cost of the permit!
Four trillion liters of water a day are removed from the Great Lakes
Lake Michigan actually had its water flow reversed because of so much water removal
Only 3% of the wildlife in the Great Lakes are native
There are more than 300 chemicals in the Great Lakes, including nitrates and chemical fertilizers from livestock and industrial agriculture in the area
Alberta's tar sands, described by Maude Barlow as Canada's Mordor, have shown exceptionally high cancer rates in populations nearby - including the unseen bile cancer in children
Most environmental groups are fighting for a National Water Strategy where there would be a ban/limits on commercial water exports, a right to safe drinking water for all, and sustainability in our water strategy