The Canadian Press
TORONTO–Ontario is spending an additional $85 million to clean up a mercury-contaminated river that has plagued two First Nation communities for half-a-century.
Environment minister Glen Murray said the funds for the remediation of the English-Wabigoon River system in Northwestern Ontario will be used to design and implement the clean-up, and for long-term monitoring.
Murray noted the money will be spent in partnership with First Nations and remediation will be based on the scientific fieldwork that currently is underway.
To date, the province has provided $2.5 million for sampling and analysis work, and Murray said it will be providing $2.7 million this year to accelerate those efforts.
Grassy Narrows has dealt with mercury poisoning since a paper mill in Dryden, Ont. dumped 9,000 kg of the substance into the Wabigoon and English River systems in the 1960s.
A report authored by five mercury experts, and released earlier this year, suggested mercury still could be leaking into the river system.
Mercury concentrations haven’t decreased in 30 years and dangerous levels still are present in sediment and fish, causing ongoing health and economic impacts in the community.
“Mercury contamination has had a profound impact on the people of Grassy Narrows First Nation and Wabaseemoong (Whitedog) Independent Nations, and has to be properly addressed,” Murray said Tuesday in a release.
“We are determined to right these historic wrongs, and we realize that actions speak louder than words,” he added.
Researchers previously have reported that more than 90 percent of the people in Grassy Narrows and Wabaseemoong First Nation show signs of mercury poisoning.
