The Friends of Temagami would like to congratulate Earthroots for their success regarding the long-overdue cleanup of mercury contamination in Grassy Narrows, in northwestern Ontario.
Earthroots, along with the Toronto Star, collected soil samples containing high levels of mercury just upstream of Grassy Narrows First Nation. A series of stories published by the Toronto Star highlighted the problem, which encouraged the Ontario government to commit to a full environmental assessment at the site of an old paper mill.
Grassy Narrows residents have been dealing with the effects of mercury contamination for five decades. Five historic portages through this area, which cross over the Arctic watershed, have been in use for thousands of years to connect Temagami to the rivers that run north to James Bay.
The Toronto Star article about the province’s commitment to mercury cleanup in Grassy Narrows can be found here.