"When the fish are healthy, the land is healthy, and maybe, maybe then the youth, 50 years from now, they'll have good health.". Hundreds of people died from resulting mercury poisoning. The fiscal update said the funding, set to start flowing in fiscal 2021-22, would allow community members from both Wabaseemong and Grassy Narrows, also known as Asubpeeschoseewagong, to stay close to home while receiving treatment. The new plan in the fiscal update would see the feds devote $28 million to the projects in 2021-22, $32 million the following year, and $70 million in each of the next two years. Water bottles are seen at the local water supply site on the Grassy Narrows First Nation, in northwestern Ontario, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. Now, Ottawa has greatly increased the size of the commitment. The province says its ongoing monitoring of the facility shows no evidence of leaching. The plant used mercury to manufacture chlorine, which was in turn used to bleach paper at the Dryden Paper Company Ltd. Community members in Grassy Narrows are still dealing with the legacy of mercury contamination, which is related to the bleaching of paper at the Dryden mill upstream between 1962 and 1970, when an estimated nine to 10 tonnes of mercury were released into the water. Reed Paper in Dryden, Ont., dumped chemicals in the river in the 1960s and early 1970s, resulting in mercury poisoning among First Nations people who ate fish caught in the area. Your support is vital to helping us provide free local news. Grassy Narrows: Why Ontario decided not to clean up mercury, Wynne won't commit to Grassy Narrows mercury cleanup, Mercury levels still rising near Grassy Narrows, report says. That points to an ongoing source of contamination, possibly leaching from the old chemical plant, Rudd said. Drawing upon primary and secondary sources, as well as … A First Nation of about 650 people near Ontario’s border with Manitoba, Grassy Narrows’ water was contaminated by tonnes of mercury dumped into its water system by an upstream paper mill. "I hope it'll become a state-of-the-art place where we can study the effects of mercury poisoning," he told a news conference last week. For almost 50 years, the river system—a foundational element of the Grassy Narrows culture—-that the community relies on for food and water has been contaminated with mercury as a result of industrial pollution. "Our community members have suffered for so long," Grassy Narrows First Nation Chief Randy Fobister said in a recent interview. Grassy Narrows declared a state of emergency over its unsafe drinking water in 2015, after a boil-water advisory had already been in place for nearly two years, as it tried to get more information from the federal government about the safety … Moreover, in June 2017, the Ontario government pledged $85 million to clean up the industrial mercury contamination. "This report by The … You can, 'Believe in science': EU kicks off COVID-19 vaccine campaign, Pornhub removes all content by unverified users, says site has been unfairly targeted, The Nature Conservancy of Canada suggests leaving your old Christmas tree in your backyard, Update on eHealth Cyberattack and Potential Privacy Breach, Detailed technology presentation heard by Cornerstone board members, First quarter financial report shows Cornerstone on track. Audience Relations, CBC P.O. In 1970, the Ontariogovernment ordered th… This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 6, 2020. Dryden is located about 130 km upstream from Grassy Narrows. Former government scientist John Rudd, lead author of the report, described official inaction as “frustrating,” while noting, “We made these recommendations in the 1980s and our report was put on the shelf.” Grassy Narrows … "We've seen the announcements, but we haven't seen the outcomes," he said. Meanwhile, Fobister said he fears his community will bear the consequences of the mercury contamination until the river is cleaned up, noting such a process could prolong the ordeal for several more generations of Grassy Narrows residents. "From birth, even today, you get stuff that affects the nerves," Fobister said. Miller said the mercury treatment facilities have potential to fill a unique place in the Canadian health-care system. "Part of that trust is putting the money away in a trust (fund) to be used for the community to treat their people, so that they can live in dignity.". A river poisoned with mercury. Grassy Narrows’ First Nation community has garnered ongoing media attention for the impacts of the mercury contamination in their watershed. Grassy Narrows First Nations chief hails more funding for mercury treatment centre. But he said community members are still leery of using tap water, relying instead on shipments of bottled water delivered to the community each week. Opposition critics said they will wait to see it take concrete shape before offering praise. Fobister said his community of about 1,200 residents continues to struggle with tainted water long after the initial mercury contamination took place. The provincial government has reviewed Rudd's new report but disagrees with it, according to a spokesperson for Ontario's Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. "The promises are great, but we need to see solutions, we need to see actions, we need to see these problems actually solved," Conservative MP Gary Vidal, his party's critic for Indigenous Services, said in an interview. It is a priority for CBC to create a website that is accessible to all Canadians including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. After six decades of suffering the effects of a mercury contamination in the English-Wabigoon River in northwest Ontario, Grassy Narrows is hoping more funding for a treatment home the federal government promised to build will provide long-term care for hundreds battling chronic health problems. The federal government committed up to $19.5 million to each community for the construction of facilities to meet the needs of residents living with methylmercury poisoning. Mercury Contamination in Grassy Narrows « Grassy Narrows worries about fate of Trudeau Liberals’ promised treatment home “I Wanted to Be Beautiful—Or, at Least, Clean”: What It’s Like to Grow Up Without Running Water » This site is maintained by supporters working with Grassy Narrows organizers. ", Last week, Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller described the lack of action on the local mercury contamination as "an aberration in our history.". The government promised to fund the building of a new water treatment plant in the community next to the mercury treatment centre. Rudd said the source of the ongoing contamination needs further study, but the feasibility of remediation does not. Natural recovery stalled 30 years ago, Rudd said, noting that levels of mercury in some waterways in the area are five to 10 times "what they should be.". What follows is a statement released by Minister Murray and David Zimmer, Ontario’s Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. Sellers was interviewed about her 2015 research report on the contamination of the river and the effects of mercury on people of Grassy Narrows. The water was deemed fit for human consumption again just this October, which Fobister said came after years of work on water treatment facilities and local pipes. Fobister said a water test showed chemical compounds known trihalomethanes (THMs) that form when the chlorine used to disinfect water reacts with natural organic matter such as vegetation and dead leaves. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6. Residents of Grassy Narrows First Nation, about 100 kilometres northeast of Kenora, Ont., have grappled with long-standing mental and physical health issues due to toxic mercury levels in the nearby English-Wabigoon River. New technology has made remediation even more viable, he said. Grassy Narrows declared a state of emergency over its unsafe drinking water in 2015, after a boil-water advisory had already been in place for nearly two years, as it tried to get more information from the federal government about the safety of its water. Grassy Narrows is in the spotlight again following the release today of the latest study to find the decades-old mercury contamination in the waterways can be cleaned up, and should be cleaned … "Currently there is no evidence to suggest that mercury levels in the river system are such that any remediation, beyond continuing natural recovery is warranted or advisable," Gary Wheeler said in an email to CBC News. OTTAWA — New money for a treatment centre for those living with the effects of chronic mercury poisoning comes as a ray of hope for a northern Ontario First Nation that has spent the past six decades in the shadow of a decades-old water contamination scandal. "What we found out quite quickly was that there was no trust between Grassy Narrows and the government of Canada, and in some senses, rightly so," he said. Find out what's happening in your community and submit your own local events. Why is Japan studying mercury poisoning when Canada isn't? He's back looking at the river again. "If we don't do something to stop the source...the problem will continue for many, many more decades.". "It was deteriorating his muscles in his body and pretty soon he was in bed again and we had to take care of him like he was a little child.". The contamination damaged the health and livelihood of multiple generations on Grassy Narrows … The damaging effects are still seen today. "We made these recommendations in the 1980s and our report was put on the shelf.". Grassy Narrows declared a state of emergency over its unsafe drinking water in 2015, after a boil-water advisory had already been in place for nearly two years, as it tried to get more information from the federal government about the safety of its water. Fobister said his community of about 1,200 residents continues to struggle with tainted water long after the initial mercury contamination took place. Fobister said his community of about 1,200 residents continues to struggle with tainted water long after the initial mercury contamination took place. Seven new COVID deaths in Saskatchewan, 559 new cases, 500 ... Have the Weyburn Review delivered to your Inbox every week! The contamination closed the commercial fishery that was the foundation of the economy at Grassy Narrows First Nation. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson, Seven new COVID deaths in Saskatchewan, 559 new cases, 500 recoveries. After years of advocacy by the communities, Ottawa reached agreements with both Grassy Narrows and Wabaseemoong earlier this year. The possibility of remediation was first studied in the 1980s by a government research team that included John Rudd. "It's great news for a whole community … We're finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel.". "He was terminally ill with the mercury poisoning that was dumped in our waters," his aunt Lorenda Kokopenace said. "The problem is being perpetuated," he said. This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship. Grassy Narrows elder: ‘When you have mercury you have it for life’ – Dec 3, 2019 Bowater, which eventually became Resolute, filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. A report commissioned by Grassy Narrows First Nation to investigate the mercury contamination found that cleaning up the community’s water supply is already feasible. The people of Grassy Narrows First Nation in northwest Ontario have been hard-hit by mercury poisoning, after the government allowed a pulp mill to dump 10 tons of waste into a river in the 1960s. Grassy Narrows and Whitedog First Nations In the late 1960s, people in the Grassy Narrows and Whitedog First Nations populations started to suffer symptoms of mercury poisoning. The fall economic statement released last week saw the Liberal government earmark $200 million up to fiscal 2024-25, plus $300,000 ongoing, to support the building and operation of mercury treatment centres in both communities. By: Maan Alhmidi, The Canadian Press Posted: 12/6/2020 6:06 AM Several Japanese doctors who had been involved in studying Minamata disease in Japan travelled to Canada to investigate the mercury poisoning in these people. He's the lead author of the new research commissioned by Grassy Narrows First Nation and released on Monday. 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