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Majority of Canadians consider water to be Canada's most
important natural resource
New study reveals more people concerned about quality
and availability of freshwater than oil, fisheries, or forests
– yet use 329 litres per day
TORONTO, ON March 17, 2009 — The majority of
Canadians (53 per cent) rank freshwater as the country’s
most important natural resource; ahead of forests (20 per
cent), agriculture/farmland (14 per cent), oil (eight per
cent) and fisheries (two per cent), according to the 2009
Canadian Water Attitudes Study released today. More than eight
in 10 think Canada will have a freshwater shortage problem
if we do not pay attention to conservation. But despite this
appreciation of the value of freshwater, Canadians
continue to waste it at alarming rates, using five times more
water per day than they think they do.
This level of consumption must change, says leading water
expert Bob Sandford, following today’s release of the
2009 Canadian Water Attitudes Study, a national opinion survey
on Canadians' awareness, perceptions and habits related to
freshwater. The survey, in its second year, was commissioned
by Unilever and RBC, and is endorsed by the Canadian Partnership
Initiative of the United Nations Water for Life Decade.
“We have a disturbing paradox in Canada when it comes
to our freshwater,” says Bob Sandford, chair, Canadian
Partnership Initiative of the UN Water for Life Decade. “On
the one hand, Canadians appear to value water as a crucial
natural resource and understand that conservation of this
precious resource is critical. Yet unfortunately at the same
time, they don’t seem to know how much water they use
each day or where it comes from.”
The Canadian Water Attitudes Study indicates that Canadians
believe they use an average of 66 litres of water per day,
for drinking, showering, bathing, toilet flushing, laundry
and dishwashing. In fact, they actually use five times more – with an actual consumption
of about 329 litres per day. Canadians not only underestimate
the amount of water they use, but their water habits actually
worsened in 2009. For example, the length of showers taken
by Canadians increased from 2008 to 2009. Canadians rank second
only to the United States in terms of highest per capita water
use in the developed world. In comparison, Europeans consume
less than half of the water Canadians do.i
There are both serious financial and environmental implications
to wasting water.
“While Canadians understand the value of water, they
don’t think about its cost or the larger impact on the
environment. Irresponsible and inefficient water use directly
contributes to climate change. For example, running a tap
for five minutes uses as much energy as leaving a 60-watt
lightbulb burning for 14 hours,” ii says Sandford. “If
water is our most important natural resource, as I believe
it is, we need to start using it more responsibly and efficiently,
for our country and for the planet.”
“Irresponsible use of water has environmental implications
for today, but even more so, for tomorrow,” says John
Coyne, vice president, legal and corporate affairs for Unilever
Canada. “This study highlights the need for increased
awareness about how Canadians use water. The inefficient use
of water is a critical dialogue in which governments, NGO’s,
business and individuals must engage. For our part, Unilever
is committed to leading by example as we reduce our water
footprint from operations and supply chain through to the
consumer use of our products.”
"Freshwater is essential for human health and all life
on earth, so it's really 'the' cause for the ages," said
Shari Austin, vice president, corporate citizenship, RBC.
"It's important for people to understand the value and
vulnerability of our water resources, which is why we undertook
this survey. That's also one of the reasons we created the
RBC Blue Water Project, our grant program of $50 million over
ten years to help protect our watersheds and ensure access
to clean drinking water."
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE POLL:
Additional Key Themes/Regional Trends
Pollutants and mass exports perceived as biggest threats
to Canada's freshwater supply
- Canadians believe the following to be the biggest threats
to Canada's freshwater supply: run-off pollutants from land
to water (19 per cent); mass export of water to the US (17
per cent); illegal dumping of toxins (12 per cent); mismanagement
of water by municipal, provincial and federal governments
(12 per cent); global warming and climate change (eight
per cent)
- Only six per cent of Canadians believe wasteful use of
water by consumers to be a threat to Canada's freshwater
supply
Canadians' concern for water equals concern for stability
of financial markets
- Eighty-five per cent of Canadians say they are "very
concerned" or "somewhat concerned" about
the stability of the financial markets; while 84 per cent
of Canadians say the same about the long-term supply/quality
of Canada's freshwater
- More Quebecers are concerned about the long-term supply
and quality of Canada's freshwater (80 per cent) than the
stability of the financial markets (72 per cent)
- Eighty-nine per cent of Canadians believe there is a growing
freshwater crisis on the planet, and 66 per cent think that
Canada is at risk of freshwater supply shortages
Canadians losing confidence in our water supply and
safety
- Confidence that Canada has enough freshwater for the long
term has declined by 11 points, from 81 per cent in 2008
to 70 per cent in 2009
- Canadians' confidence in their region's available water
has declined, from 84 per cent in 2008 to 74 per cent in
2009
- Quebecers (58 per cent) have the least amount of confidence
that Canada has enough freshwater to meet its long-term
needs
- Quebecers (68 per cent) and Albertans (67 per cent) have
the least amount of confidence that their region has enough
freshwater to meet their needs
Attitudes toward water safety are changing
- Canadians' confidence in the safety of Canada's water
supply has declined, from 81 per cent in 2008 to 72 per
cent in 2009
- Quebecers (54 per cent) have the least confidence in the
safety and quality of Canada's water supply
- While most Canadians (68 per cent) still drink their tap
water, only 4 in 10 (41 per cent) drink it directly from
the tap without first filtering or boiling
- One-third of Canadians do not drink the tap water in their
home
Attitudes toward conservation
- Ninety-five per cent of Canadians believe it is important
to conserve freshwater on an ongoing basis
- Most people (86 per cent) believe they are making reasonable
efforts to conserve freshwater
- Only 30 per cent believe that corporations, businesses
and industry are making reasonable efforts to conserve freshwater
- Significantly more Canadians put effort into electricity
conservation than water conservation (28 per cent versus
3 per cent)
- Only 40 per cent of the population knows how much they
pay for water each month, versus 73 per cent who know what
they pay for electricity
- Seventy-two per cent of homes in the Prairies say they
have water metres; this compares to 39 per cent of Canadians
in general
- Quebecers (63 per cent) are most likely to know that a
bath uses more water than a 10-minute shower
- Albertans (90 per cent) are most likely to say that they
are making reasonable efforts to conserve freshwater; Atlantic
Canadians (83 per cent) are least likely to say this
About the Survey
The 2009 Canadian Water Attitudes Study included an online
survey administered by Ipsos Reid from February 5 to 12, 2009.
It included a sample of 2,165 adult Canadians from the general
population across Canada. The results are considered accurate
to within ± 2.2 per cent 19 times out of 20, of what
the results would have been had the entire adult population
in Canada been polled. The data were weighted by region, age
and sex according to 2006 Census data.
About Canadian Partnership Initiative
in support of the United Nations Water for Life Decade
The United Nations Water for Life Decade is a globally proclaimed
decade for action on water quality and availability issues.
While each country in the world will be focusing on its own
water quality and availability issues within the larger context
of the global fresh water situation, the Canadian initiative
has been defined by a nation-wide public and private sector
partnership aimed at identifying and responding to regional
and national water issues. The United Nations Water for Life
initiative in Canada exists to put Canadian water issues into
a global context. The Canadian United Nations Water for Life
partnership initiative is housed, and has its research home
in the Western Watersheds Climate Research Collaborative at
the University of Lethbridge.
For more information about the Canadian partnership initiative
in support of the United Nations Water For Life Decade visit
www.thinkwater.ca.
About Unilever
Unilever, one of the world's largest consumer products companies,
adds vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition,
hygiene and personal care. Every day, 150 million people choose
Unilever brands to feed their families, and to clean themselves
and their homes. Unilever is best known in Canada by brands
such as Becel®, Dove®, Lipton®, Red Rose®,
Slim-Fast®, Hellmann's®, Knorr®, Breyers®,
Popsicle®, Bertolli®, AXE®, Vaseline®, Vim®,
Q-Tips®, Suave®, Sunsilk®, and Degree®.
With a steadfast commitment to water sustainability, Unilever
strives to lead by example and remains committed to further
reducing its water footprint. For ten years running, Unilever
has been acknowledged as the food industry category leader
on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for their environmental
policies. For the fourth year running, Unilever was also named
amongst the 'Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the
World' by Corporate Knights and Innovest, an international
finance and investment advisory firm. Unilever is also an
active participant in several water sustainability programs
across Canada including EcoVoyageurs, a national school-based
education program in which students are encouraged to reduce
their own 'footprint' in five key areas - transportation,
food, waste, water and packaging. In 2008, Unilever Canada
launched Go Blue, a national awareness program which to educate
consumers about steps they can take to conserve water in their
daily lives. For more information, visit www.unilever.com.
About RBC
Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE) and its subsidiaries
operate under the master brand name RBC. Canada's largest
bank as measured by assets and market capitalization, RBC
is also one of North America's leading diversified financial
services companies and among the largest banks in the world,
as measured by market capitalization. It employs more than
80,000 full- and part-time employees who serve more than 18
million personal, business, public sector and institutional
clients through offices in Canada, the U.S. and 52 other countries.
RBC is listed on the 2008-2009 Dow Jones
Sustainability Index, recognizing the world's financial, social
and environmental corporate leaders, as well as the Jantzi
Social Index and the FTSE4Good Index. The company was recently
named to the "Global 100: Most Sustainable Corporations
in the World" 2009 list. RBC was also among 67 companies
and one of only 18 financial institutions worldwide named
to the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index 2008, a prestigious
honour roll of world leaders at understanding and managing
the financial risks and opportunities resulting from climate
change. For more information, visit www.rbc.com/bluewater.
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For further information or to arrange an interview, please
contact:
Jennifer Acheson, 416-848-1708
jacheson@national.ca
Sarah Jennings, 416-848-1709
sjennings@national.ca
References:
iUnited Nations Environment Program, Division of Early Warning
and Assessment Global Resource Information Database - Europe.
www.grid.unep.ch/product/publication/freshwater_europe/consumption.php.
Accessed March 10, 2009.
iiBenefits of Water Efficiency, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency. www.epa.gov/watersense/water/benefits.htm.
Accessed March 4, 2009.
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