Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency
Water insecurity in Northern Indigenous communities in Canada is pervasive and complex with multiple dimensions and impacts. Yet the relevant literature is sparse, especially for Labrador. Our case study aimed to understand the multiple dimensions, health risks, and coping strategies of long-term wa...
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Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future
2014
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Online Access: | https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107 |
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ftmemunijournals:oai:ojs.journals.library.mun.ca:article/1107 2023-05-15T16:55:14+02:00 Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency Hanrahan, Maura C Sarkar, Atanu Hudson, Amy M Harris Centre/RBC Water Fund Labrador Institute Office of the President, Memorial University Local Service District, Black Tickle-Domino, Labrador NunatuKavut Community Council 2014-08-04 application/pdf https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107 eng eng Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107/987 https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107 Authors who publish with this conference agree to the following terms: Authors retain copyright and grant the conference right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this conference. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the conference's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this conference. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access). CC-BY Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future; Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2014 ftmemunijournals 2021-05-09T13:33:20Z Water insecurity in Northern Indigenous communities in Canada is pervasive and complex with multiple dimensions and impacts. Yet the relevant literature is sparse, especially for Labrador. Our case study aimed to understand the multiple dimensions, health risks, and coping strategies of long-term water insecurity in the Southern Inuit island community of Black Tickle-Domino, Labrador, where there is no household running water system and people rely on an under-funded potable drinking water unit (PDWU) and unmonitored shared shallow wells. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, our exploratory work included research on water quality, access, contamination, uses, preferences, and cultural interpretations. In Black Tickle water security was chronically and severely compromised and the community did not meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for safe drinking water. Some water samples had contaminants and there were past records of outbreaks of water-borne illnesses. Water insecurity was linked to poverty, food insecurity, men’s health, and mental health and poses major health risks. There is an urgent need for a sustainable strategy to improve water quality and quantity in these communities, such as that outlined by WHO in 2005. Yet these communities lack the economic and political means to implement such strategies. Our materialist approach and ongoing commitment to this work has led to early-stage work with engineers and the community to identify possible solutions. Article in Journal/Newspaper inuit Memorial University of Newfoundland: Electronic Journals Black Tickle ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.467,53.467) Black Tickle-Domino ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.450,53.450) Canada Tickle ENVELOPE(-67.733,-67.733,-67.116,-67.116) |
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Open Polar |
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Memorial University of Newfoundland: Electronic Journals |
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ftmemunijournals |
language |
English |
description |
Water insecurity in Northern Indigenous communities in Canada is pervasive and complex with multiple dimensions and impacts. Yet the relevant literature is sparse, especially for Labrador. Our case study aimed to understand the multiple dimensions, health risks, and coping strategies of long-term water insecurity in the Southern Inuit island community of Black Tickle-Domino, Labrador, where there is no household running water system and people rely on an under-funded potable drinking water unit (PDWU) and unmonitored shared shallow wells. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, our exploratory work included research on water quality, access, contamination, uses, preferences, and cultural interpretations. In Black Tickle water security was chronically and severely compromised and the community did not meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for safe drinking water. Some water samples had contaminants and there were past records of outbreaks of water-borne illnesses. Water insecurity was linked to poverty, food insecurity, men’s health, and mental health and poses major health risks. There is an urgent need for a sustainable strategy to improve water quality and quantity in these communities, such as that outlined by WHO in 2005. Yet these communities lack the economic and political means to implement such strategies. Our materialist approach and ongoing commitment to this work has led to early-stage work with engineers and the community to identify possible solutions. |
author2 |
Harris Centre/RBC Water Fund Labrador Institute Office of the President, Memorial University Local Service District, Black Tickle-Domino, Labrador NunatuKavut Community Council |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hanrahan, Maura C Sarkar, Atanu Hudson, Amy M |
spellingShingle |
Hanrahan, Maura C Sarkar, Atanu Hudson, Amy M Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
author_facet |
Hanrahan, Maura C Sarkar, Atanu Hudson, Amy M |
author_sort |
Hanrahan, Maura C |
title |
Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
title_short |
Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
title_full |
Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
title_fullStr |
Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
title_full_unstemmed |
Water Insecurity in Indigenous Canada: A Case Study of Illness, Neglect, and Urgency |
title_sort |
water insecurity in indigenous canada: a case study of illness, neglect, and urgency |
publisher |
Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future |
publishDate |
2014 |
url |
https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.467,53.467) ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.450,53.450) ENVELOPE(-67.733,-67.733,-67.116,-67.116) |
geographic |
Black Tickle Black Tickle-Domino Canada Tickle |
geographic_facet |
Black Tickle Black Tickle-Domino Canada Tickle |
genre |
inuit |
genre_facet |
inuit |
op_source |
Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future; Proceedings of the International Conference on Marine and Freshwater Environments (iMFE 2014) - Our Water, Our Future |
op_relation |
https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107/987 https://journals.library.mun.ca/ojs/index.php/IMFE/article/view/1107 |
op_rights |
Authors who publish with this conference agree to the following terms: Authors retain copyright and grant the conference right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this conference. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the conference's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this conference. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access). |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
_version_ |
1766046208621543424 |