Advanced Aboriginal Water Treatment Team (AAWTT)

The official position of the Advanced Aboriginal Water Treatment Team (AAWTT) regarding the federal engagement sessions for an "Action Plan on First Nations Drinking Water" will be released on April 14th 2009.  If you would like to have a copy e-mailed to you upon its release please contact info@safewater.org.

AAWTT is a team of volunteer participants dedicated to the advancement of water treatment processes on aboriginal reservations in Canada. Team members will help each other resolve water treatment problems when using advanced water treatment processes. The team is supported by one groundwater laboratory located at Gordon’s FN, Saskatchewan (almost completed), and one surface water laboratory (paid for by band funds) located at Saddle Lake Cree Nation, Alberta. At these two locations R&D into advanced water treatment processes is carried out on a daily basis. Both laboratories are integrated with the regular operation of advanced water treatment processes. Each plant will also become part of the bigger picture where improvements are being documented and shared with other participants.

The AAWTT and our community workshops advocate the Integrated Biological and Reverse Osmosis Membrane (IBROM) water treatment process or any other process which has equal effectiveness! The single most important aspect of producing safe drinking water is protection of source waters, and what one community discharges as waste water becomes another community's source water. The IBROM system is unique in that:

1. It produces superior quality of drinking water, exceeding US and European regulations which meet WHO regulations
2. It uses virtually no chemicals in the process, therefore being
   environmentally friendly for watershed protection
3. It uses significantly less water in the treatment process, making less demands on a water as a resource
4. Its RO membranes have far greater life span, significantly reducing operating costs
5. It greatly reduces cost of labour
6. It is as cost effective as conventional systems

We presently have sponsorship from Alberta Ecotrust, Sapphire International and Royal Bank Foundation to deliver community workshops for FN communities in SK and AB. A huge opportunity exists to sponsor workshops for Rural communities in any province. We estimate that each workshop in the prairie region will cost approx. $5,000 allowing for up to 20 delegates to attend with a free lunch. Workshops further afield would require additional travel costs for two facilitators.

AAWTT Member

Bob Pratt

Bob Pratt has been the Water keeper at George Gordon First Nation for over 18 years. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) is quick to offer its recognition that George Gordon First Nation is one of the best run reservations in all of Canada. When INAC wants to draw on statistics, design new schools, or provide an example of a well operated water treatment plant, they can count on George Gordon every time!

Yet, for years, the engineers repeatedly made Bob feel that he was the reason why George Gordon residents did not have safe drinking water. Bob watched as three different engineering companies during 15 years tried to “improve” the quality of drinking water to the community. This proved very difficult until the Safe Drinking Water Foundation (SDWF) started to work with Bob and showed that the engineers were trying to do what SDWF showed to be chemically impossible. This was a relief for Bob to know as he was feeling that it was his fault that the treatment system was not working well. INAC had no way of judging the engineering companies’ efforts and, indeed, for the entire time the engineers applied the same treatment technique, manganese greensand, with different twists. The only people that were profiting from this were the engineers as they were able to charge for literally doing the same thing over and over again. Few professionals get paid for repeatedly implementing problems rather than solutions!

In 2002 Bob and the leadership of George Gordon First Nation became aware of the Integrated Biological and Reverse Osmosis Membrane (IBROM) water treatment process being developed at nearby Yellow Quill First Nation. Bob made several visits to Yellow Quill and met Dr. Hans Peterson of the SDWF who was heading up the Yellow Quill pilot.

It soon became evident to Dr. Hans that Bob knew exactly what he was talking about! He had extensive knowledge and understanding of the water treatment process and its inability to effectively produce safe drinking water. After studying the analytical data available, it was obvious to SDWF scientists that no matter what Bob did, as the Water Keeper, the process at George Gordon was incapable of producing safe drinking water! By using science George Gordon leaders were able to negotiate with INAC to implement an IBROM system at significantly reduced costs from the implementation at Yellow Quill.

Bob and his Public Works Manager, Derek Morris, became two of the founding members of the SDWF Advanced Aboriginal Water Treatment Team (AAWTT). Both Bob and Derek are eager to share both their political and scientific experiences to help other First Nation communities achieve safe drinking water for their people.

Bob was promoted to be the Circuit Rider for the Touchwood Tribal Council in 2007, and also that year he presented to the graduating students of the Engineering faculty at the University of Saskatchewan in the hope that up and coming engineers would consider using science when designing water treatment processes. Bob has been interviewed by different media, and, has given presentations across the country. Bob organized the first workshop on ground water held at George Gordon in 2008 and had previously organized a much larger workshop in Saskatoon in December 2007 with a follow-up workshop to be held in Saskatoon in February 2009.

Bob is a shining example of how Water Keepers are often blamed for ineffective water treatment systems, and how his persistence to find solutions paid off. Leadership at George Gordon has supported Bob in his efforts to help other communities achieve that same goal. Bob is happy to mentor and offer advice to anyone experiencing similar problems, and is especially willing to help other communities with ground water.

As INAC and many engineers continue to implement water treatment processes identical to the ones that did not work at George Gordon’s, Bob is especially happy to show how a community can test its own water, do a few calculations, and then determine if there is any hope for the treatment process to work. Many times, there is not even a faint hope that the process will work and the First Nation community is a direct victim of INAC’s ill-advised policy “all we need is an engineering stamp”. That policy has encouraged poor engineering across Canada and, until INAC decides to make technically competent assessments of water treatment plants, many unsuspecting people will suffer.

The SDWF has tried to make all First Nation leaders aware that through their contribution agreements Chiefs and Councils have now accepted responsibility and liability for their community’s drinking water. In order to protect the health of their people, the leaders must make sure their water treatment plant can produce truly safe drinking water. Unfortunately, the majority of First Nations cannot meet the full extent of the Canadian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines - which was probably the driving factor for the federal government to transfer responsibility (and liability) for water directly to the community!

Derek Morris

Howard Cardinal

It is with great sadness that we share with you that Howard Cardinal has passed away on January 15th after losing his courageous  battle with cancer. Howard was a strong founding member of the Advanced Aboriginal Water Treatment Team and an inspiration to everyone he met. Howard has left behind a powerful legacy that everyone at SDWF will aspire to fulfill - that ALL Aboriginal people have access to truly safe drinking water.

Howard and Tony at Saddle Lake Cree Nation

Leon Cardinal

Louis Delver

Robert Neapetung

Roberta Neapetung

Tony Steinhauer

Howard and Tony at Saddle Lake Cree Nation

Thomas Missens