Grassy Narrows requests environmental assessment of logging plan

 Elder Bill Fobister of Asubpeeschoseewagong First Nation (Grassy Narrows) speaking at a protest at Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Clearcutting will elevate mercury poison in fish

Grassy Narrows – Grassy Narrows First Nation is calling for a thorough environmental assessment of the newly approved plan for clearcut logging on their Territory – an important test of Ontario’s environmental laws.  Grassy Narrows is concerned that the planned logging could harm the health of their families by raising mercury poison levels in local fish.  The logging plan makes no mention of mercury, even though Grassy Narrows Territory is the site of Canada’s most infamous case of mercury poisoning arising from 9,000 kg of mercury that was dumped into a local river by a paper mill upstream in the 1960’s.  Scientific studies indicate that clearcut logging in the boreal forest can raise mercury in fish to unsafe levels. 

“Ontario has ignored our voices, and is planning to force more devastating clearcuts on our people,” said Joseph Fobister, a Grassy Narrows hunter and businessman.  “Our people will become even more sick if the government knowingly allows the logging industry to poison the fish that we eat.”

Grassy Narrows’ request is an important test of Ontario’s environmental laws.  Logging plans in Ontario are generally exempt from Environmental Assessment, but concerned people and groups can request an Individual Environmental Assessment (IEA) of a plan if they believe that environmental and human health are not being protected.  Such requests have almost ever been granted. 

“Grassy Narrows’ request will either set a precedent as one of the first logging plan subjected to an Individual Environmental Assessment in Ontario, or it will expose a glaring gap in the application of Ontario’s laws to protect our health from the harmful impacts of industrial activity in our forests,“ explained Amber Ellis, Director of the grassroots environmental group Earthroots, which is supporting Grassy Narrows in this request.

 StarBuzzOnline.com