The Dominion - Dene

Defending the Land from Nuclear Waste

Sandra — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 09:23:31 +0000

Indigenous community elders, activists gather in northern Saskatchewan against nuclear waste site

SOUTH BAY, SK—The storm clouds had moved on by the time people arrived at South Bay on lake Ile-a-la-Crosse last Friday for a grassroots gathering against a potential nuclear waste site in northern Saskatchewan. Dene, Cree and Métis elders from affected communities, grassroots activists from around Saskatchewan and others from as far as the west coast and Germany shared coffee, songs, experiences and a whole lot of moose meat from August 3 to 6 at the Survival Celebration Camp for Sustainable Earth.

"We have to protect the land," Jules Daigneault told those gathered in a sharing circle around the campfire. When the 70-year-old elder heard about the gathering happening in South Bay, he travelled across the lake to the camp from his home in Ile-a-la-Crosse in a boat he made himself. "Everything comes from the land. All our food comes from the land."

Gunter Wippel traveled to the camp from Germany, where he has been actively involved in anti-nuclear activism for decades. Wippel has been visiting northern Saskatchewan since the late 1980s, involved with struggles against the expansion of the uranium mining industry. He was also in the province in the mid-90s for the Seaborn panel hearings on nuclear waste management in Canada.

"I can't believe that we still have to protest that same shit," Wippel remarked during the closing circle on Monday.

As is the case in most countries with nuclear power production, spent fuel bundles are stored onsite at reactors in Canada—in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. The federal Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is planning a deep geological repository to place all of Canada's nuclear waste underground in the rock. No permanent waste storage facility exists anywhere in the world, largely due to opposition from scientific, environmental, activist and other communities.

In the latest stage of the decades-long search for a long-term nuclear waste disposal site, NWMO has received expressions of interest to host the site. Although Saskatchewan is already host to the tailings and waste from the uranium mining industry producing the uranium to be refined and processed for nuclear energy elsewhere, the province was included in the search for a willing host community. Along with several places in Ontario, NWMO has three locations in northern Saskatchewan on the map: Pinehouse, the English River First Nation and Creighton.

But elders and community members from Pinehouse and the English River First Nation say that their communities are largely opposed to hosting nuclear waste in their territories. Despite the money that NWMO and Saskatchewan-based uranium mining giant CAMECO have recently been pouring into the local councils, community promoters and other programs, they say that they did not initially even know that their own councils—municipal in Pinehouse and Band in English River—were advocating for the multi-million-dollar proposals.

"The Chiefs there don't say nothing to us. They just talk about money, budgets," Dene elder Louis Wolverine told The Dominion. Wolverine, 84, was one of several elders who attended the camp from Patuanak, near the part of the English River First Nation seemingly identified for the waste site.

"They say that it's okay, that nothing's very dangerous," he said of CAMECO and NWMO. The people in Patuanak don't want nuclear waste, he said. "The elders too—they don't want it."

Elder Mary Jane Wolverine spoke to people attending the elder's circle in Dene, with translation into English by another elder from Patuanak. Several elders spoke of the impacts of uranium mining on fishing, hunting and gathering grounds. Some had traplines and seasonal camps where the Key Lake mine is now located. They are now speaking out to protect their traditional territory, the interconnected lakes and waterways, the animals and the medicinal plants from further destruction.

"We have our children, our future grandchildren growing up...Myself, I don't want it in our country," she said. "All the elders are saying the same thing, that we don't want anything to do with nuclear waste."

In Pinehouse, a town located along the road up to the Key Lake uranium mine, the mayor and municipal council have been meeting with NWMO behind closed doors, says Fred Pederson, an outspoken Cree elder from the community. NWMO has a group of paid promoters, an elder's group and access to young students, says Pederson.

But 60 per cent of eligible voters in Pinehouse signed a petition against nuclear waste disposal in northern Saskatchewan, without the petition even having reached the whole population. The Committee for Future Generations, a grassroots organization in the region, presented the petition with more than 12,000 signatures to the provincial legislature last year. Opposition continues to grow in Pinehouse and around the province.

"It's not the people that want it. It is just our leaders that are promoting it," Pederson told The Dominion. He and several others at the gathering also raised the issue of systemic racism by the provincial and federal governments in their search for a nuclear waste disposal site in northern Saskatchewan, in Indigenous and Metis traditional territories. "It's just like we don't count, like they can kill us off."

When the nightly conversation and music around the fire continued into the wee hours of Monday morning, those who stayed awake extending their time together on the last night of the gathering were rewarded. The northern lights made a surprise appearance in the night sky, with shimmering green lights dancing overhead as the last people wandered off to their tents, campers and the beach.

Elders from affected northern communities, the Committee for Future Generations, and others who attended the camp from further away reiterated their commitment to the struggle against nuclear waste in northern Saskatchewan. Revitalized by the camraderie, inspired by the elders, and energized by the young children playing along the beach, those involved with the gathering have plans well underway to continue the campaign over the next few months.

"If we band together, people produce power," said Pederson. "We can stop all of this. We can stop the destruction."

Sandra Cuffe is a Media Co-op editor based in Vancouver, and a member of the Vancouver Media Co-op.

Survival Celebration

Water is All of Us

dawn — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 09:35:52 +0000

Report from the fifth annual Keepers of the Water gathering

LAC BROCHET, MANITOBA—Words flowed like water from Indigenous Elders gathered at the fifth annual Keepers of the Water gathering in Lac Brochet, Manitoba, this August.

The gathering of the Keepers—an organization made up of of First Nations, environmentalists, and concerned people who want to protect the Arctic Ocean drainage basin—was hosted by the Northlands Denesuline First Nation. It stressed the importance of unity and action to protect waters from being polluted and poisoned.

With a population of fewer than a thousand people, Lac Brochet can be reached only by airplane or by water, and a delegation from Hatchet Lake, SK, took four days to canoe to the gathering. There were also various scholars, representatives, and leaders, including MLA Gerard Jennissen, who said “Water is a horrible enemy but a great friend.” Throughout the gathering, participants shared their thoughts and knowledge about the preciousness of water and how it might be better protected from human destructiveness.

Sam Gargan, who is Grand Chief of the Dehcho in the Northwest Territories and a co-founder of the first Keepers of the Water gathering in 2006, explained how De means river, and Ne means land, together making the word Dene, which signifies how the Dene people are defined by their reciprocal relationship with land and water.

Gargan also described how “western” concepts of democracy are historically derived from Indigenous cultures, and discussed how a holistic relationship with the earth can lead to the protection of both the land’s surface and subsurface. At a time when mining threatens the long-term well-being of future generations in many places, Nahanni Park stands as an example to emulate. Part of the Dehcho people's traditional lands, Nahanni Park began as 4766 square kilometers in 1972, and has since expanded to roughly 28,000 square kilometers through the efforts of the Dehcho people in the NWT. The park draws its name from the South Nahanni River, which feeds Canada's longest river, called the Deh Cho by the Dene and also known as the Mackenzie River.

The defining question for the gathering was centred around asking what this generation wants to pass on to future generations.

The history of industrial mining has shown over and over again—from Uranium City in northern Saskatchewan to Navajo homelands in the US—that mining jobs are temporary but that pollution remains long after the mines have closed.

For this reason, sustainable economic models are urgently needed. These may range from solar and wind projects to the protection of caribou habitat, which is crucial for the survival of Indigenous communities. Caribou are a traditional and essential food source for these communities. The well-being of the caribou depends on clean, healthy watersheds and lands.

It is challenging to think of water not merely as an external object in need of protection, but as that which literally constitutes our bodies and also lives, as it constantly moves within and through us, linking us to the watersheds that we are part of. This kind of thinking is key to water stewardship. It is demonstrated by Cree Elder D’Arcy Linklater's comment that when he refers to the water, he does not merely mean rivers and lakes, but women themselves.

The passionate words of First Nations elders were complemented by visitors like Dr. Radha D’Souza, who drew connections between Indigenous peoples in Canada and the struggles of India’s 67 million Indigenous people. D'Souza gave an overview of shifts that have been happening at the United Nations, and asked a critical question: are we serving the economy or is the economy serving us?

She also noted that there is a serious tension between the language that exists in declarations and the way they are actually implemented, which can undermine or even nullify the goals and values of the declarations.

Robert Patrick from the University of Saskatchewan noted the inequities that continue for First Nations communities. For instance, they have a boil water advisory rate that is two-and-a-half times higher than in non-First Nations communities. Patrick observed that a number of reserves have the wrong technologies for the water issues they face, such as infrastructure that is often too high-energy or high-maintenance for the community’s needs.

Patrick noted that building small can lead to better living. He suggested that considering a community's proper scale in conjunction with a long-term view that anticipates the effects of climate change (such as drastic weather extremes, and more unpredictability in the amount and timing of rains) will more deeply connect human societies to mindful watershed protection.

When the Keepers first met in 2006, they drafted a declaration that continues to resonate strongly. It reads:

“Water is a sacred gift, an essential element that sustains and connects all life. It is not a commodity to be bought or sold. All people share an obligation to cooperate to ensure that water in all of its forms is protected and conserved with regard to the needs of all living things today and for future generations tomorrow.”

It was heartening to witness that the Keepers are staying on track, guided by the waterways themselves, navigating the many dangers that face us today.

Rita Wong is a poet who lives on the unceded Coast Salish lands also known as Vancouver.

Canoes on the Lake

Dene Drummers

Oil Versus Water

dru — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:26:41 +0000

Toxic water poses threat to Alberta's Indigenous communities

Alberta is replete with precious oil. Recovery of that oil from the tar sands, however, is putting another precious resource at risk: water. Dene and Cree First Nations people live close to and in the midst of the largest tar sand deposit in the Athabasca River region and oil extraction is harming their water supply.

The recoverable oil reserves in Alberta's tar sands are so bountiful that they vie with oil reserves in Saudi Arabia and Venezuela for top status. Compared to Saudi Arabia, however, the oil extraction process is very expensive. What is extracted is bitumen, a form of crude oil, mixed with clay and silica that must be refined to produce a barrel of oil. Current high oil prices make the extraction and refinement of bitumen very profitable.

Scientists at the University of Toronto and the University of Alberta have warned that the excessive water demand will result in the disappearance of the Athabasca River, having a devastating impact on the largest boreal delta in the world---a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

First Nations communities who live along and depend on the Athabasca River are also at possible risk from tar sands operations. There have been reports of increased illness and signs of toxic chemicals affecting wildlife.

Some elders with Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN) are concerned with the environmental monitoring of the Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA), an NGO that is supposed to represent "all levels of government," First Nations and other stakeholders.

ACFN elder Pat Marcel said that CEMA was "dead" in the eyes of the elders because the Athabasca River is not being protected. "The corporations have to deal with us. We've got environmental agreements with every one of them," Marcel said.

"If you're not able to honour the treaty that we signed," said Marcel, "we might as well do away with that treaty and you can get your scrap of paper back and we can get our country back."

George Poitras, a member of the Mikisew Cree First Nation, also in Fort Chipewyan, explained:

"There's been a de facto extinguishment of our treaty rights because the government continues to take up land without any consideration or consultation with the First Nations." The treaty, Poitras told the Dominion, "obligates the government to consult with us any time there is a potential or adverse impact on our treaty rights--to hunt, fish, trap and so on."

But the government is not doing that.

"Historically," said Poitras, "they attempted to colonize us through policies and legislation that are paternal, colonial, imperial and they continue that attitude...[the government is] simply not dealing with us as priority rights holders of these lands."

University of Alberta ecologist David Schindler, winner of the 1991 Stockholm Water Prize (known as "water science's Nobel Prize"), expressed concern over industry-related chemicals found in the water and their effect on human health.

In an interview shown in a video documentary produced by OilSandsTruth.org Schindler said his biggest concern is the possibility of a breach of massive tailing ponds near Fort McMurray, which now cover an estimated 50-square kilometres. "Those ponds are acutely toxic material, so they would affect things probably well down the Athabasca and into the Slave River, and possibly beyond the Slave Delta."

Such a breach, said Schindler, could conceivably occur in the event of extreme rainfall or an earthquake. But it's not just the extreme possibility that has Schindler concerned.

"We know that those [tailing pond] dykes do seep some material. They try to catch it at the bottom and pump it back over the top. I don't know what per cent efficiency they have, but very few things are 100 per cent efficient."

In Fort Chipewyan, there have been reports of increases in diseases and cancers.

A local doctor, John O'Connor, reported disproportionately high incidents of colon, liver, blood and bile-duct cancers in the community. "There have been several different kinds of cancer, as well as what we call auto-immune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, various skin rashes," O'Connor told the Dominion. "The malignant--the cancerous diseases have been the biggest concern."

One condition, Cholangiocarcinoma, normally occurs in one out of 100,000 people. But in Fort Chipewyan, "We've had two tissue biopsy confirmed cases...and possibly another three or four, which didn't actually get to tissue biopsy diagnosis."

"In a population of between 750 and 1200, that's very unexpected."

"There are all kinds of sicknesses going on," said Allan Adam, a councillor with ACFN. "The elders say that before, in the 70s, people weren't sick like they are now. That's when all the oil sands started developing."

Warning signs of toxicity have also turned up in animals. "Some people say that they've seen spots inside the animals, that they won't eat the moosemeat because there's a different taste in it now," said Adam. "Fish have different growths on them, that weren't there before. Pusses growing out of their skin, and the gills are deformed on some of them"

After O'Connor took his claims public and called for an inquiry into the effects of the tar sands operations on water, he became the subject of an official complaint by officials at Health Canada. He subsequently gained the support of the community, environmental groups and First Nations. The Alberta Medical Association unanimously passed a resolution defending his "professional obligation and his right to speak out when he observes something."

Chief Roxanne Marcel of the Mikisew Cree First Nation has issued an appeal: "Our message to both levels of government, to Albertans, to Canadians and to the world who may depend on oil sands for their energy solutions, that we can no longer be sacrificed any longer."

Toxins from tailing ponds aren't the only problem on the Athabasca, however.

Estimates have oil production at 3 million barrels per day by 2015. At this rate, the Athabasca tar sands are projected to last over 400 years. But along with the effects of climate change, water usage will exacerbate the drying of the Athabasca.

Because the Athabasca River is iced-over for long periods, it is susceptible to low oxygen levels from decomposing organic matter. Diminished flows could exacerbate low oxygen levels further. This threatens high flows that flood shallow-side channels and perched basins in the delta, which are critical spawing grounds for fish like walleye.

"About the most positive thing I can say is that I'm glad I'm a human being and not a fish in Alberta," said Schindler.

While Fort Chipewyan and other communities downstream from the tar sands are the first to suffer, scientists say Alberta is not far behind.

The 1900s, said Schindler, has been unusually wet in Alberta, but that is not likely to remain the case. "Any farmer will tell you that it was pretty borderline for agriculture here in the twentieth century, and a good part of the province had to rely on irrigation water."

"If we get a return to those earlier conditions with the effects of climate change and with the high population and industrial growth here, we have the makings of a perfect storm with respect to effects on water."

While oil companies pumping over 100 billion gallons of water out of the Athabasca ever year will be the main problem for life downstream on the Athabasca, it is likely to be climate change--fed increasingly by the tar sands--that will affect the water supply of Edmonton and Calgary.

"Alberta's saving grace has been the water that flows out of the Rocky Mountains," said Schindler. "The only reason we have developments like Calgary and Medicine Hat is because of that water. That water is drying up."

"It's a little bit ironic that the province that's been opposing greenhouse-gas regulations the most is going to be the first to suffer, but that's where we are," said Schindler in May of this year.

That tar sands mining is the cause of toxins in the water and the recent upturn in diseases and cancers is a foregone conclusion for many residents of Fort Chipewyan.

Nonetheless, O'Connor says that the way forward lies in getting the government to investigate the problem and verify the source of the illnesses.

"I've asked for a baseline health study to be done in the community. This has been asked for before," said O'Connor. "If the population south of here is concerned about the health of this community, I would expect further pressure for such a study to be done will result in it being done and will shed much-needed light on what is happening."

Schindler says that the immediate solution is for the government to install a water treatment plant in Fort Chipewyan, to address the problem with the drinking water, and then investigate.

For George Poitras, the battle over the ongoing mining comes down to the fundamental right to exist.

"If we don't have land and we don't have anywhere to carry out our traditional lifestyle, we lose who we are as a people. So if there's no land, then it's equivalent in our estimation to genocide of a people."

"Here, we're living in a G8 country, fully developed, one of the most advanced countries as far as quality of life and as Indigenous people, we're still fighting for our existence."

Playing by Lake Athabasca

Water Intake