Saskatchewan is way behind the rest of the world and the rest of Canada in entering the water conservation debate, says an environmental group.
“We’re one of the last places in the world where water issues have really pierced the public’s consciousness,” said Darrin Qualman, water issues co-ordinator for the Saskatchewan Environmental Society.
The group wants to turn what has been a trickle of debate into a flow of public opinion by drafting a Statement of Expectations on Source Water Protection in Saskatchewan, a document that will help mould provincial water policy.
Read Also
Short rapeseed crop may put China in a bind
Industry thinks China’s rapeseed crop is way smaller than the official government estimate. The country’s canola imports will also be down, so there will be a lot of unmet demand.
“It facilitates a real discussion in the province about what are our priorities around water and how are we going to manage this,” said Qualman.
The statement will highlight promising policies in other jurisdictions and provide detailed guidance to the government in crafting its own policy.
It will be based on a statement in Ontario supported by a coalition of 26 groups that has proven “extremely powerful” in communicating the wishes of citizens to government, said Qualman.
The Saskatchewan Environmental Society is looking for a similar buy-in from Saskatchewan organizations, including environmental, First Nations and agricultural groups, businesses and municipal governments.
Qualman said the province has already adopted positive policies such as its safe drinking water strategy, its conservation document and the creation of watershed stewardship committees, but it needs to be held accountable when crafting future policies. The statement will establish specific benchmarks to judge future policies.
“These things can run into other interests and we think it’s important for citizens who care about water protection and watershed protection to help government move forward with as much support as possible.”
The environmental society is holding a one-day workshop in late May to provide broad-based input into developing a statement of expectations that will include issues pertaining to agriculture.
“There’s going to be a lot of discussion in the province of Saskatchewan as to whether we pursue production and processing of very water-intensive crops. I think that’s a question that remains open at this point,” said Qualman.
The document will be written over the summer months, after which the group will attempt to get an “extremely broad sign-on” in the fall.
The plan is to present the statement to the Saskatchewan government this fall.
