The Lakehead Rotary Club met on March 5, 2020 at the SKAL lounge, Valhalla |Inn, Thunder Bay. It is a blustery snowy day in Thunder Bay despite promises of an early spring. A big thank you to Gail Brescia who has stepped up for the month of March to chair the Lakehead Rotary club meetings. Gail welcomed all members present to the meeting and also welcomed the guest speaker Kerry Kirkkunen from CAA to the meeting.
Paul was asked to say a few words. He provided club members with an overview of the current boil water advisory situation on First Nation reserves in Canada. One of Rotary International goals is to improve access to clean water and the experience of this need is very relevant in Northwestern Ontario. In particular Northwest Angle 33, a First Nation community near the Manitoba border is currently undergoing upgrades to the water system at a cost of $12.2 million dollars. This project when finished will eliminate the need for bottled water as the only source of clean water for the 200 community members who have been under this boil water advisory for 5 years. Approximately 50 First Nation reserves in Canada with a large proportion in Northwestern Ontario have been under a boil water advisory for years. The federal government has stated it projects that water systems will be updated for all reserves by 2021. It is hoped that this goal is a reality for individuals living on reserve with poor water conditions across our region and across Canada.