Water Emergency

Communities in many countries of the Global South are facing major problems with access to clean drinking water, a situation that is becoming critical with climate change. The combined effects of sea-level rise, coastal erosion and the intensification of devastating meteorological phenomena reduce access to drinking water to populations who are already in precarious situations.

The UQAM Water Resource program is recognized as one of the most comprehensive available. With the Water Emergency project, the program will be enhanced through field missions focused on the use and management of water resources in contexts diametrically opposite and complementary to those in Québec. In collaboration with local authorities, students will establish a water resource diagnosis and will help improve access while conserving water for future generations. This is a major issue in countries where life expectancies are limited by access to water.

Water Emergency plans to lead scientific missions targeting countries or regions where a team of five to twelve master’s and doctoral students can help contribute to the surveying, protection and sustainable use of water resources for local populations. Each team will be involved in three constituent steps in each mission, over a total of two years:

• Prior to the mission: preparation with local authorities and a series of presentations in schools across Canada to raise awareness among students to the major issues related to water access for those vulnerable communities.
• During the mission: awareness-building activities in local schools, training of workers in charge of the water supply, exploration and characterization of the resource, installation of scientific equipment for resource protection.
• After the mission: synthesis of scientific results delivered to local authorities and a second series of talks in Canada to present results. There will also be remote monitoring of projects via local teams trained during the mission.

Through its essential actions, Water Emergency will have major benefits, both here and in the nations where help will be provided. In particular, it will:

• Offer innovative university teaching enhanced by field work in a context far from Canadian realities. Through their involvement in planning, communications, work-team management, and the application of scientific methods, students will gain access to a well-rounded experience, acquiring knowledge they can use in the job market and in their research. Additionally, by integrating the Water Emergency project into their curricula, the UQAM master’s and doctorate programs will become an international reference in the field of water resources.
• Sensitize young generations of Canadians to the realities of water resource management through the presentations provided by participants and the information posted on social media as the project advances. Through these efforts, Water Emergency will inform and build awareness among Canadians of the consequences human development has for the environment. The hope is that the next generation of scientists and researchers will take on this vocation.
• Provide essential help to local communities faced with the imperatives of development and environmental issues. By involving them in planning and fieldwork, Water Emergency will allow them to gain new knowledge, improve their access to water and master aspects of resource conservation for future generations.

For its first edition, Water Emergency will be visiting Vanuatu, an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean particularly exposed to environmental insecurity caused by climate change. In all the South Pacific island nations, less than 50% of the population has access to safe drinking water and no organization has the knowledge and methods of the Water Emergency project to access water resources in these highly diverse hydrogeological contexts. The combining of isotopic and geochemical methods and the hydrogeological and climatological capabilities of the team will help local communities move toward the long-term management of water resources.