A new national survey suggests that while Canadians increasingly recognize freshwater as the country’s most vital natural resource, most do not feel well informed about the issues affecting it.
The findings released by the charity AquaAction are based on the polling of nearly 1,200 Canadians and point to a widening divide between public concern, understanding, and urgency when it comes to freshwater protection.
Conducted through Cint market research between August and September 2025, the poll updates questions first posed in a 2021 Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) survey on freshwater perceptions. The new research also includes responses from Michigan residents, reflecting AquaAction’s expanded cross-border work following the opening of its U.S. office.
More than half of Canadians surveyed (52.6%) identified freshwater as the nation’s most important natural resource, ranking it well ahead of forests and other assets. Despite this, only one-quarter of respondents described themselves as “very informed” on freshwater issues. More than one-third said they felt poorly informed, a gap researchers say limits people’s ability to understand threats, evaluate policies, and take meaningful action.
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“This new survey reveals that people deeply value freshwater, but they’re not seeing the excellence they expect,” said Soula Chronopoulos, AquaAction president. “By making education a required part of water programs, framing policies through health outcomes, and accelerating the adoption of proven innovation, we can move toward stronger, more accountable freshwater protection. Residents on both sides of the border are telling us exactly what they want in this study — now it’s time to deliver it.”
The poll results also indicate that freshwater has become even more important to Canadians since the 2021 baseline survey. AquaAction attributes the rising awareness to climate-related droughts and floods, contamination incidents, and increased national attention on long-standing Indigenous water crises.
Survey participants ranked clean water for future generations and human health as their highest priorities. Economic and aesthetic considerations were cited far less frequently. While 70.8% of Canadians said they were concerned about water quality, only 32.4% expressed strong concern and just 15.8% rated existing protections as “excellent,” suggesting low levels of urgency despite broad recognition of risk.
Researchers described the findings as a “concern–knowledge–urgency gap“. Canadians value freshwater, but many lack the understanding needed to recognize threats or engage in solutions. Twelve percent of respondents reported no personal connection to freshwater at all, underscoring what AquaAction calls the resource’s “invisibility” in daily life.
The survey also revealed that language plays a significant role in shaping public engagement. Terms such as “water security” and “water crisis” conveyed urgency and were widely understood, while “watershed” remained unfamiliar to many Canadians. AquaAction says vocabulary gaps hinder public participation in conservation and policy discussions.
AquaAction presented the findings during a national webinar attended by researchers, community leaders, and water-sector experts. The charity says the results will help shape a national water-literacy campaign being developed in partnership with Canadian educational institutions and with support from the federal government.
The 2025 survey builds on ECCC’s 2021 Value and State of Freshwater and Appropriate Responses to Freshwater Issues research, which drew on responses from 2,001 Canadians. AquaAction’s updated study replicates several of the original questions to measure trends over time and incorporates open-ended responses that map how different words influence public understanding of water issues.
A full white paper detailing the survey methodology and findings is available through AquaAction.
