Alberta wants to release treated oilsands waste into the Athabasca River. Mikisew Cree First Nation says it’s ‘unacceptable’

By Carl Meyer, The Narwhal Seven months after the Liberal Party vowed to “immediately introduce and pass legislation” affirming the right of First Nations to clean drinking water, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government says they’re still working on it. This comes as First Nations leaders call on the government to better protect the health of their communities from the threat of toxic waste in the Alberta oilsands. The Alberta government is looking closely at recommendations made in September to speed up the creation of standards, so oilsands companies can treat and release their giant reservoirs of wastewater, called tailings ponds, into the Athabasca River. The oil and gas industry has been asking for permission to release the treated wastewater. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has given Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz a…

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