Research on water servicing agreements with First Nations by a U of G professor and a researcher is featured in today’s Globe and Mail.

Prof. Brady Deaton, holder of the McCain Family Chair in Food Security in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics, and researcher Bethany Lipka wrote an op-ed about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s promise to end boil-water advisories on First Nations reserves in the next five years. Their article stresses the need for solutions that recognize, build and leverage relations between First Nations and government.

The article highlights Deaton and Lipka’s research on water servicing agreements between First Nations reserves and municipalities. They found that First Nations reserves receiving water from a nearby municipality are significantly less likely to fall under a boil-water advisory. They also discuss potential opportunities for new water servicing agreements.