Green will work with First Nations on national water policy

October 5, 2015. Under the Green Party’s plan to protect Canada’s water, leader Elizabeth May has committed to reversing changes to the Fisheries Act and working with First Nation communities, municipal, provincial, and federal governments to create a national water policy. The Green Party would also invest $800 million per year for basic infrastructure for First Nations, including drinking water and adequate housing. According to a 2015 Council of Canadians report, there are 169 drinking water advisories in 126 First Nation communities. “It is a Canadian embarrassment that the vast majority of boil water advisories are on First Nations communities in this country. This is a health issue that must be fixed,” said Fran Hunt-Jinnouchi, a former First Nations chief and Green candidate in Cowichan-Malahat-Langford, who was with May when the leader announced the party’s water protection strategy.