It is an illusion that some may have when they say that we have an abundance of drinking water in the Comox Valley.

Fact
70% of the world is water, 2.5% of that is fresh water, only 30% of the freshwater is in circulation. Just a fraction of this supply is actually usable for human use. In reality only .007% of accessible water is actually usable for drinking water.

Fact
Canadians are the second highest users of water in the World.

Fact
Almost every watershed in BC is at risk of clear-cut logging and real estate development today.

Fact
Local Government has NO control over private land management in our drinking water sheds. There is no legislation that has any guts to it that protects our drinking watersheds from private interest.

Unless the public and local governments choose to become better aware and more active on issues regarding drinking water in the Comox Valley, we put at risk for future generations, what quality and quantity of water we do have and seriously risk losing our water from being a public utility.

When the Government turns a blind eye and takes no action to curb or even stop all logging in our watersheds, we place our drinking water at serious health risk.

The practices of logging, over development, industry and pollution in our watersheds will deplete our drinking water quality and quantity. When our watersheds are being destroyed as we speak, we must ask who will pay the bill for high priced infrastructure to clean and chemically treat our water.

Are you prepared to write a check today to bring Water to The region from the Van lakes or and an improved system at Comox Lake. If we actually started today you could write a check for 97-150 million dollars.

If we properly plan for regional water Strategy and coincide this with a regional growth Strategy, we may have a better idea of when to say yes or no to proposed changes in the natural environment of our Watersheds.

Regardless of timing, the planned development proposals in the Comox Valley are not in the business of Water. But they want it bad enough to move forward without proven supplies and will gladly turn over our human public right to a private corporation.

Do you want to have a voice in how your water is managed?

The future of Water supplies are also at risk with the unknown outcomes of climate change.

Are we going to get more rain than ever before, drenching our clear-cut watersheds into mud holes?

Are we going to get dryer hotter periods of summer to over-heat our clear-cut and over-developed watersheds?

I cannot answer these questions but I can tell you that looking after the health of drinking watersheds and proper well-planned water management is over-due.

The traditional response to match water availability and human demands has been to use water supply management models that build huge water storage and diversion projects in order to supply water for power generation, irrigation, flood control and other waterworks. Newer approaches to water supply such as demand management and the soft path attempt to be more holistic by using an ecological framework that includes humans as part of the watershed.

The myth of Canada being a water rich country will have to be debunked before there are any major shifts in attitudes and behaviors towards water management.

Today is the day to stop and pay attention to your drinking water. Start by conserving and continue to educate yourself on the issues of drinking water from both a local and a global perspective. It is the blood of life.


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For more reading and a realistic view on your drinking water, check out the Comox Valley Drinking Water Reference Guide This guide can be found at all local Vancouver Island Regional Libraries or can be viewed on-line by clicking HERE.

See also: The Soft Path for Water