Countless reports show water is undrinkable in many Indigenous communities. Why has nothing changed?

Thu, 1 Dec 2022 19:59:12 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/countless-reports-show-water-is-undrinkable-in-many-indigenous-communities-why-has-nothing-changed-194447>

"Tap water in more than 500 remote Indigenous communities isn’t regularly
tested and often isn’t safe to drink, according to a water industry report
released last week. In some communities, drinking water contained unacceptable
levels of uranium, arsenic, fluoride and nitrate.

While these findings are dire, they aren’t news to us. There have been myriad
reports over the years on the poor status of safe drinking water in Australia’s
remote communities all pointing to inequity of essential services with
implications for health. But little has been done to rectify this.

Safe drinking water is a basic human right, no matter where people live. First
Nations communities have campaigned for decades for clean water on their
Country. As Alyawarre Elders, Jackie Mahoney and Pam Corbett, from Alpurrurulam
community in the Northern Territory explained during the report’s launch:

That’s why we’re fighting for this water. It’s not only for us, it’s for
them too […] For our old people who fought before us and our kids’ future."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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