Amend First Nations Clean Water Act
Sign on the House of Commons websitePetitioners ask that Bill C‑37 be amended to recognize the human right of all First Nations people to clean, safe drinking water, be UNDRIP‑compliant and receive sufficient funding to implement it.
Why we would sign this petition
- It would enshrine an equal human right to clean water in federal law, addressing gaps petitioners identify in Bill C‑37.
- UNDRIP compliance, including Article 25 protections, would extend safeguards beyond reserve lands to traditional and treaty territories.
- Securing explicit funding would enable concrete water‑quality measures, enforcement and long‑term access instead of a symbolic right.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Extending jurisdiction beyond reserves raises complex legal and constitutional issues and could require extensive consultation and negotiation.
- Committing unspecified new funding may be costly and would require trade‑offs with other priorities or clearer fiscal planning.
- Some may prefer negotiated, bilateral or treaty‑based solutions that tailor approaches to each First Nation rather than a single federal law.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the Government of Canada The Government of Canada is legally obligated under the 2021 Safe Drinking Water for First Nations class action settlement agreement to introduce legislation that upholds First Nations’ equal right to clean, safe drinking water; The Liberal government’s Bill C-37, the First Nations Clean Water Act, falls significantly short of this legal obligation, failing to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water; Bill C-37 limits First Nations’ jurisdiction and authority over water to RESERVE LANDS ONLY, excluding lands over which Aboriginal title is claimed by a First Nation, or has been confirmed by a court; The Liberals have excluded Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples from Bill C-37 to bypass First Nations’ rights in Modern Treaties and in traditional lands and territories; and Just like in Bill C-5, Bill C-37 is part of a broader trend of the Carney Liberal government repeatedly violating Indigenous Constitutional and Treaty rights and ignoring their duty to consult and obtain the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples. We, the undersigned, residents of Canada and First Nations,, call upon the Government of Canada to amend Bill C-37 to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water, to be compliant with ALL articles of UNDRIP, and to commit sufficient funding to ensure the right to clean water is upheld in practice.
Government response
No government response is available yet.