Wataire Industries, Inc., an international company focusing on developing and delivering technology-based water harvesting systems worldwide, announced the signing of an exclusive agreement with Chief Bert Alexander and Merril Messervey dba, under the name Samquan, to become exclusive agents for the marketing and distribution of Wataire Industries products to the First Nations of Canada.
Under the terms of the agreement, Samquan is obligated to purchase a minimum of five 40-ft containers and five CI 2500 industrial generators per year to retain exclusivity. The contract will produce a minimum revenue of approximately $1.5 million annually to Wataire Industries, Inc.
Wataire Industries President P. Fraser said, "Canada is a developed nation; we generally assume the water we drink is safe and clean. But for many of the half a million Canadians living on First Nations reserves, access to clean and safe water is a major problem."
Currently, over 100 First Nation communities must boil their drinking water. Health Canada indicates that more than half of those communities are located in rural and remote locations. Indian and Northern Affairs identified that over one quarter of the water treatment systems in First Nations communities remain at high risk to contamination. A report by the Office of the Auditor General recently concluded that the federal government's unregulated and poorly coordinated approach to First Nations water treatment poses a very real and dangerous threat to First Nations citizens.
Chief Bert Alexander, P.Hrc., NP principle of Samquan, was born in the small community of Aguathuna on the Port au Port Peninsula of Newfoundland and Labrador and currently resides in the community of Kippens. His extensive and diverse professional background includes extended periods in financial and human resource management, education and business development. He currently teaches accounting and business programs at Western College in Stephenville, NL, Canada. Among his credits, he has developed and trained several sales teams in both Canada and the U.S.
He was elected Chief of the Ktaqamkuk Mi'kmaq Alliance, KMA, in June 2002. Since then, he has helped build the organization from its original 240 members to an aboriginal organization comprised of approximately 7,500 members. He continues to be a strong advocate for aboriginal rights for his people.
Source: Wataire Industries, Inc.
