Dissolved Organic Compounds (DOC)
“Tainted water and broken systems on Ontario’s First Nations reserves are jeopardizing health, burdening parents and caregivers, and exacerbating problems on reserves. First Nations people have the same human rights to adequate water and sanitation as all Canadians, but in practice cannot access them.” – Amanda Klasing, Senior Researcher, Women’s Rights Division, Human Rights Watch
“I’ve never seen a water supply in such poor shape! The lake is covered with blue greens, which make mats in nearshore areas. Yet this is a drinking water supply for several thousand First Nations people! This is a story that city people need to hear and see. They cannot imagine that we have water problems of this magnitude in Alberta.” – Dr. David Schindler
The community draws its water from Saddle Lake, which has 25-30 ppm of organics, as well as large algal blooms in the summer.
