One comfort during the current pandemic is the coronavirus does not affect municipal water sources. But for some Native Americans, every day can be a struggle to access clean drinking water. Native households are 19 times more likely to have incomplete plumbing than their white counterparts. That number is from a 2019 study by DigDeep, a nonprofit that tracks water access in the U.S. The group estimates that at least 30 percent of those living on the Navajo Nation lack access to running water. Dozens of First Nations in Canada, like the Neskantaga First Nation, have gone years without clean water. Building clean water infrastructure can require years of work, millions of dollars, and protracted legal fights. We’ll take a look at what’s being done to connect Native people with clean water.
Grace Bulltail (Crow/Three Affiliated Tribes) – assistant professor in the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin- Madison
Michael Mascarenhas – associate professor at the University of California – Berkeley in the department of environmental science, policy and management
Break 1 music: The Gift of Life (song) Randy Wood (artist) The Gift of Life (album)
Break 2 music: Canoe Song (song) Chenoa (artist) Spirit of Salishan (album)