Communities affected by devastating B.C. floods highlight the importance of swimmable, drinkable and fishable waters
“We have found that people who make the smartest choices for their communities are the ones who understand their personal connection to water, know the local protection laws and regulations and adhere to traditional knowledge. Now, as many B.C. communities work to restore their livelihoods, we urge all Canadians to keep swimmability, drinkability and fishability top of mind.”
"The water of these communities, once essential for life, is now a great danger to their health - not just to drink, but even just to touch."
"The people of B.C. need to understand that protecting oneself around contaminated water is paramount. When coming into contact with it, proper personal protective equipment must be worn. Otherwise, stay away. We cannot consider the water safe until data show it to be safe."
The excerpts above are from a recent article in the Globe and Mail, written by our Vancouver Waterkeeper, Lauren Brown Horner and Fraser Riverkeeper, Sadie Caron.
Read the article here: Communities affected by devastating B.C. floods highlight the importance of swimmable, drinkable and fishable waters
Lauren and Sadie are prominent voices in the health and protection of British Columbia’s, and all the Pacific Northwest’s, waterways.
In the article, they state how they share a vision of a world where all communities are able to thrive from having access to swimmable, drinkable, and fishable water.
They share that having swimmable, drinkable, and fishable water means to be able to touch the water safely, where water can be consumed without fear of illness, and that a waterbody can support a healthy and viable aquatic life.
They highlight how in the aftermath of the series of atmospheric rivers that bombarded southern B.C. and caused severe flooding, landslides, evacuations, tainted water, threats to salmon populations, the essential water of these local communities now poses a great danger to their overall health, therefore failing to meet the vision of water that is swimmable, drinkable, and fishable.
They speak to how the people of B.C. need to understand that protecting oneself around contaminated water is paramount. They identify that people who make the smartest choices for their communities are the ones who understand their personal connection to water, know the local protection laws and regulations, and adhere to traditional knowledge.
They state that the best thing to mitigate future catastrophes stemming from extreme weather is prevention and preparedness, and that climate conversations must move from the background to the forefront. Urging that all Canadians need to keep swimmability, drinkability, and fishability top of mind.