The Stoney Nakoda Nation has secured $62 million in federal funding to rebuild water treatment infrastructure across its three reserves — Morley, Eden Valley, and Big Horn — west of Calgary, in a move leaders say is long overdue after decades of boil-water advisories and broken promises.
The announcement, made Friday by Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu during a visit to the Morley reserve, will fund the construction of two new water treatment plants and upgrades to distribution networks that in some areas rely on pipes installed in the 1970s.
Decades of Waiting
"Our people have been boiling their water for years — in a province that exports billions of dollars of natural resources," said Stoney Nakoda Chief Aaron Young. "Today is an important step, but we will not celebrate until clean water is actually flowing from every tap in our community."
The Morley reserve, home to approximately 3,800 people, has been under some form of drinking water advisory for parts of the last 15 years. Residents have described hauling water jugs, bathing children in bottled water, and living with the constant uncertainty of unreliable supply.
Construction Timeline
Engineering assessments are expected to be completed by spring 2026, with construction beginning that summer. The new facilities, designed to serve the communities for at least 30 years, will incorporate both conventional treatment and membrane filtration technologies.
Indigenous Services Canada said the investment is part of the government’s ongoing commitment to eliminate all long-term drinking water advisories on First Nations reserves, a promise first made in 2015 that has repeatedly missed its target dates.
The Assembly of First Nations’ Alberta regional chief, Marlene Poitras, called the funding "necessary but not sufficient," noting that water infrastructure needs across Treaty 7 nations far exceed the current federal commitment. "Every community deserves clean water. Full stop," she said.