A former labourer who worked at the Dryden paper mill in 1974 said he was part of a crew that dumped drums of mercury and salt into a pit near near Grassy Narrows First Nations, according to a Toronto Star investigation.

The report, published on Monday, June 20, said Kas Glowacki sent a letter to the Grassy Narrows chief last August as well as to the Ministry of the Environment.

In response, the ministry told Glowacki there was nothing to worry about, even though mercury levels in Wabigoon River fish are many times higher than the safe amount and many in Grassy Narrows suffer and even die from mercury poisoning.

Environment critic for the NDP Peter Tabuns and Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell released a joint statement after the investigation went public Monday.

“Today’s reports show definitively that the government was told about ongoing sources of mercury contamination of the Wabigoon River,” the statement read.

“When NDP Leader Andrea Horwath asked the Premier [Kathleen Wynne] if they knew about ongoing mercury contamination, the Premier refused to acknowledge anything.”

The statement also said “the Premier is dodging responsibility for action, and that has to stop.”

Campbell, along with Horwath and Nickel Belt MPP France Gélinas, has been calling on the Liberal government to commit to mercury remediation after a report was released to the public on May 30 that said it was possible.

There is also a possibility that there is an ongoing source of mercury contamination somewhere in the Wabigoon-English River system, the report said.

When Horvath asked Wynne about the potential source during Question Period on June 8, Wynne said she had no knowledge based on discussions with environment ministry scientists that there was.

In a supplementary question, Howath asked if the government was actually monitoring the water in the Wabigoon River so they could accurately say whether there was new contamination or not.

The answer was directed to Minister of Aboriginal Affairs David Zimmer, who said he would be meeting with Chief John Fobister in Grassy Narrows on June 27.
Horvath asked again if the government would commit to mercury remediation. Minister for the Environment and Climate Change Glen Murray said he and Zimmer had met with Chief Fobister and tabled “a comprehensive 12-month plan for full field studies.”

Murray did not specify if those field studies would include determining if there was a source of ongoing contamination.

The Ontario Legislature is adjourned for the summer until Sept. 12.