The sale of fresh water is seen to be environmentally irresponsible. Canada is attempting to ban its exports of fresh water to its neighbours, like the United States. Canada believes that water will become the most essential environmental source in the next century. The United States has always been refusing that this ban may harm other nations. Canada holds a fifth of the world's fresh water supply and it can cause a huge environmental problem if they continue to ship these huge quantities of water to other nations. .
Canada owns 20% of the earth's fresh water. 10% of it is renewable and can be accessed from rivers or lakes. The rest remains as snow in the North. Both Canadians and Americans are considered to be the world's largest consumers of water. They use 100 gallons a day, per person. It is mostly lost in toilets or bath drains. So, if the water exporting gets banned and we hold 20% of the world's fresh water, it can cause shortages of water in different parts of the world, especially as the world's water use increases. When it does increase, environmentalists and ecologists argue that fresh water will be the most important source in the next few decades. .
Canada sells its water mainly from the Great Lakes and Newfoundland's Gisborne Lake. They sell it to mainly its neighbours, the United States and Mexico. Some think that doing this is ruining their ecosystem. A 15-year-old student told people in a hotel lobby, using a microphone, that doing this is ruining it. She also explained how there is a lot less of the Great Lakes to share. Water levels in many of the lakes have dropped 55.9cm in the past year; the average levels of all five lakes could fall as much as 91cm by the year 2035. .
When water gets shipped, they ship as much as 600 million litres of water. For example, that's how much they sent off to Asia from Lake Superior. .
The sale of fresh water to the U.S is creating many debates on the environment factor in Canada.