Grassy Narrows
What Happened
In 1962 Dryden Chemicals Ltd. began to operate a Chlor-alkali plant in Dryden, Ontario. The Dryden plant used mercury to manufacture the chlorine, which was then used to bleach paper at the plant. Between 1962 and 1970 the company dumped an estimated 9,000 kg of untreated mercury into the English-Waigoon river. The river is upstream from grassy narrows, which poisoned the river. Due to the poisoning, the Ontario province ordered Dryden Chemicals Ltd. to stop dumping the chemical into the river. However, the order only included water pollution and not air. Due to this, airborne mercury pollution still continued to spread into Grassy Narrows. Until 1975 when Dryden Chemicals Ltd. changed to a cleaner system of Chlor-alkali manufacturing instead. The company ceased operating in 1976. Because of the mercury in the water, the fish in the English-Waigoon river became contaminated with mercury. In 1970, Ontario banned all commercial fishing in the river due to the contaminated fish. At the time, the fish had mercury levels 10 to 50 times higher than fish in other bodies of water.
The Effects
The mercury contamination devastated the community of Grassy Narrows in more ways than one. Firstly, fishing was Grassy Narrows main source of income. Therefore, when the commercial fishing ban hit the community many residents were struggling to make money. Despite the contamination, some members of the community continued to eat the fish in the river themselves. Fish were a staple in many of the residents diets, so they did not stop eating it after the ban. Because of the contaminated water and fish, many of Grassy Narrows residents developed mercury poisoning. The poisoning passed down the generations and in 2016 a report found that more than 90% of Grassy Narrows residents had mercury poisoning. Symptoms such as hearing and speech difficulties, lack of coordination, muscle weakness, nerve loss in hands and face, trouble walking, and vision changes have been found in the residents. Mercury poisoning can have very serious health complications. Mercury can affect development in children and babies symptoms of this may include impaired motor skills, problems thinking or problem-solving, difficulties learning to speak or understanding language, issues with hand-eye coordination, and being physically unaware of their surroundings. Some long-term effects of mercury poisoning may include neurological damage, reproductive effects, and cardiovascular risks. In the long run, mercury poisoning can kill.
What the Government Has Done
The government has taken steps to help Grassy Narrows. In 1986 Grassy Narrows reached a settlement agreement with the provincial and federal government. The settlement included the creation of a mercury disability fund and a mercury disability board, which administers funds to band members affected by the mercury contamination. Furthermore, in 2017 the government promised to fund $85 million to a remediation plan for the English-Waigoon river. As well, the government said they would build a mercury treatment plant in Grassy Narrows to clean the river system. In addition, in 2020 the government said they would put $200.1 million over five years and $300 000 to build and run centres. The water treatment plant has taken over 40 years for the government to offer, and the citizens have been fighting for the plant through it all.