A video from last week shows the mouth of the Big Stone River in Cumberland House. (Karen Carrier/Facebook)

By paNOW Staff

RUNNING OUT OF WATER

Low water levels prompt State of Emergency for Village of Cumberland House and Cree Nation

Oct 19, 2023 | 12:15 PM

A northern Saskatchewan village and First Nation says there’s insufficient water and are now in a State of Emergency.

The Metis Nation-Saskatchewan along with Cumberland House and Cumberland House Cree Nation announced the emergency declaration on Thursday.

In a statement, officials with the communities said there is not enough water available to fill their community’s reservoir for the coming winter and that they’re engaging with the Water Security Agency, Watershed Authority, SaskPower, and Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency to find a solution.

The community currently only has sufficient water to last four weeks.

“This ongoing situation we are facing is a result of complete negligence from SaskPower, Water Security Agency, and the Saskatchewan Government,” said Acting Mayor of Cumberland House Veronia Favel.  “Along with the Municipality not having access to fresh water, wildlife, and our traditional medicines are at risk of being lost. Continuously we have felt this impact.” 

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Cumberland House Cree Nation Chief Rene Chaboyer said his community has the treaty right to reliable water and this crisis is greatly affecting another right to fish and gather.

“The health of the Cumberland House area is critically important to local and global ecosystems. Hydroelectric development has negatively altered our ability to hunt, trap, fish, and gather our traditional medicines,” he said. “Now we are not able to safely navigate.  The state of the fur-bearing animals, the birds, fish, and plants are also part of the crisis.”

“As Section 35 rights holders we have an Aboriginal right to our ancestral lands to gather medicines, hunt, and fish,” added MN-S Regional Director Ruan Carriere. “Our traditional way of life and our cultural identity and teachings are being lost by not being able to access our ancestral homelands. The current water crisis is causing the Largest Inland Delta in North America.”

The Cumberland House reservoir is fed by the Big Stone River, part of the Saskatchewan River system.

Reduced flow levels in the watershed due to ongoing drought conditions and systemic upstream water diversions along the South and North Saskatchewan, and Saskatchewan River watersheds have emptied the village’s reservoir and surrounding Delta watershed.

Videos have recently surfaced on social media providing a first-hand look at the water levels along the lake.

According to data from the Water Security Agency, levels at Cumberland Lake have declined since the start of the year.

Its highest was at 265.7 m whereas on Thursday morning, it was around 264 m. Both those levels are well below the historical median of 266 and 265 m.

(Saskatchewan Water Security Agency)

In response to the situation, the Government of Saskatchewan issued a statement saying a short term solution is being implemented that will provide a three month water storage.

“Additional sources are being considered to ensure that water is available to the village until spring 2024 and beyond,” the statement reads.

The government also stated by the low water levels are not caused by the EB Campell Dam but said a lack of precipitation and very low mountain run-off levels has resulted in lower flows on the Saskatchewan River.

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panews@pattisonmedia.com