Transport Canada withholds health study on Fort Chipewyan contamination

By Natasha Bulowski Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Indigenous leaders and experts are questioning Transport Canada’s claim that contamination at a dock in Fort Chipewyan is unlikely to pose any risks to human health. Last week, Indigenous leaders called out the federal government for not telling them about the contamination, pointing out Transport Canada had many opportunities over the past year, but failed to do so. A 2017 environmental site assessment commissioned by Transport Canada found its dock — known locally as the “Big Dock” and the surrounding soil and waters in Fort Chipewyan had toxic hydrocarbons, metals and compounds. “This dock is in the middle of our community, our kids swim there,” Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation Chief Allan Adam said at a virtual press conference last week. ACFN, Mikisew Cree…

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