WINNIPEG – The federal government is spending an additional $323.4 million over the next two years to improve water and wastewater issues on First Nations in Canada.
The cash was set aside as part of the 2014 budget, which was unveiled last week.
Part of the investment will go to Manitoba’s Island Lake communities located roughly 600 kilometers northeast of Winnipeg. Several homes in the area lack indoor plumbing. Residents are forced to use outhouses or slop pails and get their water from communal standpipes or trucks. Living conditions in the region have been compared to those of Third World countries.
It’s not known how much of the money will go to the four communities in the Island Lake area. Funding decisions will be informed by the First Nations infrastructure plans that they themselves prepare.
Since 2011, Ottawa has committed more than $26 million toward improving water and wastewater services for the Island Lake region.
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