As Canadians we are the WaterKeepers

WaterKeepers is a monicker I heard recently when I attended a lecture by CBC Quirks and Quarks host Bob McDonald. He spoke about our "Goldilocks Planet" meaning of course that it is just right for human survival - at least it has been until now and will be again if we stop the destruction created by us humans.

As Bob says, the earth has been referred to as The Blue Planet ever since the famous NASA photo taken from space was released to the public. It is covered in 80% water but 90% of that water is salty and not available for humans. Of the 10% remaining 90% is trapped in the ice caps. This leaves precious little fresh water available to a rapidly expanding, thirsty population. And 1/4 of the available fresh water in the world is in Canada. Hence we are naturally the WaterKeepers. Other nations will eventually create a rush on this Blue Gold and many believe wars will be fought over rights to fresh water just as wars have been fought over oil.

As a nation of peacekeepers this will be a traumatic and difficult time for Canadians. Will you fight for water to be a basic human right? Will you fight against those who pollute this precious resource? Will you fight to conserve water in your home, your community, your country? These questions are not about the future these questions are for the here and now. We need to do these things to ensure that future generations have clean, safe, drinking water. As WaterKeepers we can all help to ensure that that will be possible.