Down the Drain How We Are Failing to Protect Our Water Resources

An incisive critique of Canada’s drinking water gatekeepers. Canada is celebrated for its abundance of fresh water, and few Canadians question the safety of the water that comes from our taps. But is this trust justified? One study estimates that contamination of drinking water causes 90,000 cases of illness and ninety deaths every year. In this authoritative review of decades of legislation, research, and independent regulatory critiques, accompanied by riveting stories of the many failures of our water supply, award-winning journalist Chris Wood and Canadian water policy expert Ralph Pentland expose how governments at every level have failed to protect our drinking water. The authors review the history of water management in Canada and approaches to the problem in Europe and the United States, then analyze our own approach in recent times, and finally propose a strategy to protect our water—including a new charter that will hold our government to account.

Ralph Pentlan, former Director of Water Planning and Management in the Canadian Department of Environment, is a widely sought after consultant to governments and others all around the world on a variety of water and environmental policy issues. Chris Wood has been a presence in national journalism since the 1980s, as an independent writer and for more than a decade as a bureau correspondent and editor at Maclean's. His recent writing focuses on water, climate, and society's adaptation to ecological limits. His books and magazine articles (in The Walrus and elsewhere) have won or been nominated for a score of distinctions, including two National Magazine Awards and nominations for the Donner and Shaughnessy Cohen book prizes.