Cless’s notion of eco-hubris stemmed from Greek Tragedies when looking closely at the relationship between power and nature. Eco-hubris is more closely looked at as an excessive zeal to control or dominate nature by acting selfishly without limit. This Greek term is used for someone or a group of people that “act with excessive pride or arrogance toward the natural environment, and violate external nature as greatly as they do internal, human nature with their hubris. Governmental positions and advances in technology are seen at the forefront to have absolute power and control over the environment. The Watershed by Annabel Soutar highlights how governmental power causes selfishness and therefore is not beneficial for the people not in the government nor the environment. Observing The Watershed through an eco-hubris lens allows us to understand how human power can affect nature and more specifically how human power can affect our source of freshwater. 

The idea of running out of freshwater is not something that we as humans think about often because it is an idea that many don’t believe is possible. Soutar however stresses that it is something that should be on everyone's mind. Freshwater is a large part of human existence and therefore is something that we should never take for granted. If the Canadian Governments decision to cut funding and shutdown the Environmental Lakes Area went through it would have had a huge impact on the environment and would have affected the supply and quality of freshwater. Before this could fully go through the IISD (International Institute for Sustainable Development) stepped in to take over and fund the Environmental Lakes Area. 

Steven Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada was at the forefront of cutting the costs to the ELA. Towards the end of the play there is a conversation between the three girls on the trip that highlights very well why Steven Harper wants to cut the costs and also shows how the notion of eco-hubris is worked into the play. This conversation shows the control that Steven Harper and the Canadian government have and the selfish decisions that they make because they will be beneficial to them. Hazel who is a young girl and a friend of Annabel Soutars girls says, “and also Stephen Harper only really cares about money” (Soutar 145). Money is a huge part of eco-hubris, money talks and makes people do things that ultimately hurt others. Hazel goes on to say that Harper doesn't want to pay money to the ELA because he wants to keep the oil source (Soutar 145).  Towards the end of the conversation they mention something very interesting while talking about how much money Stephen Harper is giving to people everyday and the debt of Canada. Ella says, “the ELA costs only two thousand dollars. Compared to other companies, that’s tiny” (Soutar 146). This conversation is important to understand the control that the government has and how they dominate nature with selfishness. Money gets in the way and so does priority, this case Stephen Harper takes priority in the oil source and wants his money to go into that instead of helping find the ELA. 

These are not all of the parts of The Watershed that we see eco-hubristic ideals coming to the surface but are some of the main ones that are important to understand. The whole idea of defunding the ELA is an example of eco-hubris however it is important to break it down in order to look at The Watershed and understand how human power can affect nature. Soutar’s use of drama in order to shed light on an environmental issue that is going to affect Canada’s freshwater source in the future is both effective and inspiring. Soutar through her work is able to fully show how the notion of eco-hubris is at stake when studying freshwater in Canada. 

The Canadian government started The Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) in the 1960's in order to research how to sustainably deal with water pollution in the great lakes. The research center is located in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. In 2012 the Canadian Government announced that they were shutting down the ELA due to budget cuts. The closure of the ELA would have huge impacts on the environment and society all together. The ELA's main goal is to ensure a safe freshwater supply while at the same time being cost efficient in what they do. With the ELA covering 58 lakes in Ontario the closure of this organization would be crucial. 

Today the ELA is run by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). Since the IISD took over the ELA they have made great strides in their research. The research they do is more affective than any research that could be done in a laboratory. They examine everything from the atmosphere to fish populations and have already made huge decisions for the government and different industries. The IISD took over the ELA in 2014 and say that since then "we have already initiated new ecosystem-based science, responding to today’s threats to our water; collaborations and partnerships with outside researchers and universities; and educational activities that promote and build capacity for freshwater science and policy action in Canada and around the world." (IISD)

Not many people have ever heard of a watershed and those who have do not truly understand what it is. A watershed is a "land area that channels rainfall and snowmelt to creeks, streams, and rivers, and eventually to outflow points such as reservoirs, bays, and the ocean." (National Ocean Service) In simpler terms a watershed is a location where water collects and then empties into larger bodies of water. Any contaminants that may be in the water when it is collected will travel with it when it goes into larger bodies of water. Many people believe that there is nothing that can be done however this is how our very own freshwater is being contaminated. There are ways in which we as humans can impact what ends up where and therefore ways for us to save our freshwater.