Youth protest over tainted water in Grassy Narrows
‘We just want to be heard,’ say protesters in Kenora
Darwin Fobistr, 19, and other youth from Grassy Narrows, are calling on Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne to take steps to clean the community’s mercury-tainted river. (Brett Purdy / CBC)
A group of young people protested in Kenora today demanding the cleanup of their local river, which has been contaminated with mercury for decades.
Sharice Bruce and a group of friends want Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne to commit to a cleanup of the English-Wabigoon River.
“We know our waters can be cleaned and we’re not going to stop rallying until we get what we deserve,” Bruce,16, said in a release.
The protesting youth held signs and wore T-shirts that said “Mercury Kills,” “Water is Sacred,” and “Healthy River, Healthy People.”
The English-Wabigoon River became contaminated in the late 1960s after Reed Paper in Dryden, Ont., dumped mercury in the river.
Darwin Fobister, 19, said community members living in Grassy Narrows should be able to drink water from the tap, and not a bottle.
‘It’s not normal’
“It’s pretty bad. It’s not like normal for us to be doing that you know,” Fobister said. “We just want to be heard, and we just want something done about our water,” he said.
Courtney Scott is from Whitedog, Ont., another First Nation where the river has been tainted by mercury.
Over 20 youth took to the streets of Kenora to raise awareness about the absence of clean drinking water in Grassy Narrows. (Brett Purdy / CBC)
Scott said she wants the public to know the community needs clean water.
“It’s affecting our younger generations and also our elders,” Scott, 18, said. “We don’t have clean drinking water. We have always go to the store and buy a bottle of water.”
Scott said the mercury has also affected how people in the community eat.
“We can’t eat fish as much. We have to be careful how we eat it and how we cook it.”
Ontario government responds
The Ontario ministry of Indigenous relations and reconciliation responded to protesters’ concerns Monday night, stating it is working with other levels of government to address ongoing community health issues.
A remediation report recommended the Ontario government work on further water quality samples in partnership with the First Nation.
An Ontario provincial spokesperson said the government intends to do just that, adding the ministry of the environment and climate change committed $300,000 to help with sampling efforts.
“Ontario takes the concerns of Grassy Narrows First Nations about their community’s health and well-being very seriously,” a spokesperson with the Indigenous relations ministry said in a statement. “Based on the findings of this fieldwork, the parties will work together to review the most appropriate remedial options available.”