CBC

International group takes up Grassy Narrows logging fight

March 1, 2006

An international environmental group will help the Grassy Narrows First Nation take its land-right's fight to the boardroom of a logging firm.

The San Francisco-based Rainforest Action Network says it will lobby investors and bankers of Weyerhaeuser Co. Ltd., and publicize the Grassy Narrows fight for its land in northwestern Ontario.

The 700-person band has mounted a multi-faceted battle against both Weyerhaeuser and Abitibi-Consolidated Inc., including lawsuits, public protests and a three-year logging blockade.

A spokesman for the action group says he believes responsible companies will react positively to their requests.

David Sone said it could force the firms not to participate "in the worst ecological and human rights abuses that are going on right now."

The three largest banks in the U.S., Citigroup, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase, have recently adopted policies that attempt to safeguard old growth and endangered forests, according to the group's website.

Their website freegrassy.net will be launched this week.

On Tuesday, the Grassy Narrows First Nation sent a letter to Weyerhaeuser and Abitibi-Consolidated, warning that it had given its "final notice" over what it considered the destruction of aboriginal land.

"Know that you face a fierce campaign against you on all fronts – in the woods, in the streets, in the marketplace, in your boardrooms and in the media," said the letter.