TORONTO, Oct. 28, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For nearly 18 years, the over 1,500 people who live in Attawapiskat have been on a constant boil water advisory. That means that children born since 2001 may have never had the chance to drink clean, fresh water out of the tap. For years, no solution has been found that would ease the plight of the families who live in Attawapiskat. Until now.
“For too long, many of Canada’s First Nations communities have suffered from a lack of clean, fresh drinking water,” said Amanda Hohmann, Executive Director of La’ad Canada. “It is unimaginable that in a developed country like ours, in 2019, there are people who lack the basic necessities of life. This is why we are proud to announce the public launch of the Indigenous Solidarity Water Project (ISWP).
“A collaborative project bringing together several advocacy groups and grassroots individuals from across the country, the ISWP will lead the way in the creation and development of a sustainable water solution. By using cutting edge technology to provide clean fresh water to even the most remote communities, our ultimate hope is to produce a functioning proof of concept which will create the roadmap to solving this problem once and for all.”
“Many who live on reserves across Canada feel that they have been abandoned by the government, and in many ways they have,” said Ryan Bellerose, an indigenous rights and Métis activist working on the project. “We must put an end to the ongoing water crises that has left thousands of First Nations and indigenous Canadians without water to drink, forced to rely strictly on shipments of bottled water that are both expensive and can be harmful to the environment.
“We are hoping that Canadians of good conscience from coast to coast can help us fill the void that has been left by the government as we work to create a functioning system that can ultimately be adopted for use across Canada.”
The Indigenous Solidarity Water Project’s fundraising campaign can be found at: http://www.gofundme.com/ISWProject
For additional information please contact Amanda Hohmann, Executive Director, La’ad Canada at amanda@laadcanada.com or 647-471-7911
A short video about WaterGen’s system can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5D-qm8O384