News
Aug 30, 2009
NFNECP Proposals
Aug 30, 2009
Canadian Academy of Health Sciences Symposium 2009
Aug 30, 2009
HEALING OUR SPIRIT WORLDWIDE
Aug 30, 2009
BCRRHRN 2nd Annual Conference
Aug 30, 2009
17th Annual NCP Results Workshop
Apr 08, 2009
Attawapiskat Leaders Make Plea for Toxic Site Clean-Up
The federal and Ontario governments must address the ``open toxic wound” in the remote northern community of Attawapiskat and stop ignoring the health implications of fumes wafting through the reserve, opposition politicians and local leaders said Tuesday.
Mar 16, 2009
PCB-Contaminated Pacific Salmon Contaminating Region’s Resident Killer Whales
A study published in the January edition of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry says that nearly 100 percent of pollutants found in Chinook salmon were acquired while the fish were growing to adulthood in the Pacific Ocean.
Feb 09, 2009
INAC: Canada, Yukon and First Nations Reach Consensus on a Closure Plan for the Faro Mine Complex
A committee of senior officials from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, the Government of Yukon, Selkirk First Nation and Ross River Dena Council has reached a consensus on a closure plan for the Faro Mine Complex. The consensus on the closure plan for the former lead-zinc mine in central Yukon was announced today by the Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians and the Honourable Brad Cathers, Yukon Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources.
Feb 09, 2009
Aboriginal Leaders Frustrated After Report Finds Cancer Rates Higher Than Expected
Researchers who examined cancer rates in a small aboriginal community near the oilsands in northern Alberta have found more cases than expected. But Dr. Tony Fields, a senior official with Alberta Health Services, said Friday the higher numbers shouldn’t have people jumping to conclusions about a possible link to the environment. Some communities downstream from oilsands plants have expressed concerns that industrial pollution is responsible for cancers and other health problems.
Dec 10, 2008
UNBC Lands Huge Project
Nov 10, 2008
Ontario Urged to Force Companies to Pay for Clean-Up of Mines
Ontario must catch up to other provinces and fix loopholes that have left taxpayers on the hook for the estimated $500-million cost of cleaning up abandoned mine sites across the province, a new report urges. Lax regulations have allowed mine owners to walk away from 5,700 mine sites in Ontario, 4,000 of which the government has deemed to be potentially hazardous to public health and the environment, it said.
Oct 16, 2008
Could the Diabetes Epidemic be Down to Pollution?
10 July 1976, a reactor at a chemical plant near the small town of Seveso in northern Italy exploded, sending a toxic cloud drifting into the summer sky. Around 18 square kilometres of land was contaminated with TCDD, a member of the notorious class of industrial chemicals known as dioxins. The immediate after-effects were relatively mild: 15 children landed in hospital with skin inflammation and around 3300 small animals were killed. Today, however, the accident casts a long shadow over the people of Seveso, who are suffering increased numbers of premature deaths from cancer, cardiovascular disease and, perhaps surprisingly, diabetes.
Oct 16, 2008
Elders Stay Connected
Traditional and cultural knowledge about how to protect the environment and look for signs indicating its health is still held by First Nations elders. The challenge for researchers is how to interpret traditional and cultural information into scientifically measurable terms.
Oct 16, 2008
Exposure to Contaminated Sites Linked to Diabetes
Mushkegowuk First Nations are now researching health impacts resulting from long- term exposure to radar sites. Between 1955 and 1965, the Federal Department of National Defense constructed, operated, and then, abandoned 98 Mid-Canada Radar Line sites that provided an early warning system to counter the threat of enemy air attacks on North America.Seventeen of these sites are situated in traditional First Nation territory in Ontario, many of which are near the Polar Bear Provincial Park. Found contaminants have been polluting the environment along the James and Hudson Bays for more than 40 years and include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), asbestos, pesticides, oils and various forms of petroleum.
Sep 10, 2008
Alberta Oil Spill Kills Hundreds of Birds
Alberta’s oil and gas industry is again in the environmental dock, as a spill at an oil well in the province has killed up to 500 ducks and swallows, according to reports from the scene. The birds died after landing in the spill, which was found Monday at an out-of-service conventional oil well in the southwest corner of CFB Suffield, in southeastern Alberta. The well is operated by Calgary-based Harvest Energy Trust.
Sep 10, 2008
Health Canada Wins Award for Commitment to Environmental Health on First Nations Reserves
In 2005, Health Canada began to look into using GIS to monitor environmental health and wellness programs for First Nations peoples and started to collect relevant information to populate a database. Prior to utilizing GIS technology, the organization did not have access to geographic data or mapping capabilities to aid in understanding the environmental health of the region.
Aug 25, 2008
Will Canada’s Oil Boom Be an Environmental Bust?
The largest dump truck in the world is parked under a massive mechanical shovel waiting to transport 400 tons of oily sand at an open pit mine in the northern reaches of Alberta. Each Caterpillar 797B heavy hauler — three-stories high, with tires twice as tall as the average man — carries the equivalent of 200 barrels of heavy oil worth $23,000 per haul at today’s prices.
Aug 25, 2008
First Nation Leaders in Ottawa Fight for Environment and Health
“We live off the land – wild game and fish – once we put those all in jeopardy we’re pretty much left out in the cold.” These words are from Fort Chipewyan Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation chief Allan Adam during a press conference in Ottawa on Friday, Feb. 15. His statement was in connection with a report released by a non-governmental organization (NGO) on the environmental and health effects of the oil sands, with an emphasis on how Ottawa is not fulfilling its environmental duties.
Aug 25, 2008
Mutated Fish Alarms Delegates at Northern Alberta Water Gathering
Residents in Fort Chipewyan, Alta., say they saw this fish, seen in this Aug. 15 photo, caught from Lake Athabasca last week. (Courtesy of Ling Wang)Days before a conference on water quality began in Fort Chipewyan, Alta., last week, residents say a strange fish with two mouths was found at the nearby lake.
Aug 25, 2008
First Nations Unite Over Mining
Several First Nations groups met last week to unite on one issue — mining. The meeting, hosted by the Williams Lake Indian Band on Friday, July 18, included chiefs, councillors, technical staff and band members of 11 bands from the Chilcotin, Shuswap and Carrier Nations from Williams Lake to Kamloops.
Aug 25, 2008
Deaths Due to Air Pollution to Skyrocket
An estimated 700,000 Canadians will die prematurely over the next two decades because of illnesses caused by poor air quality, the Canadian Medical Association said in a report Wednesday.
Aug 25, 2008
Keepers of the Water Three: Water is Boss!
Since early July, members of the Keepers of the Athabasca Watershed Society (KAWS) have been travelling the length of the Athabasca River Basin. Along the way, they’re holding conferences in communities alongside the river as part of their Keepers of the Water tour. The tour started on Jul 6 at the river’s origins in Jasper, and is set to culminate in a five-day gathering of environmental organizations, community leaders and First Nations groups in Fort Chipewyan—where the river ends.
Jul 29, 2008
Where the Mould Grows
Maureen Atleo’s abandoned house on the Ahousat Reserve is one of 45 buildings condemned because of an invasive black mould sprouting from walls and floors. And still the government and the Ahousaht band bicker over who’s responsible for finding a solution.
Jul 28, 2008
Environmental Health Special on Aboriginal Peoples Television Network
Dr. Laurie Chan and other environmental health researchers and First Nations leaders discuss pressing environmental health issues in First Nations communities across Canada on APTN’s Contact Show. March 13, 2008.
Jul 28, 2008
Cancer Clusters Probed
The Alberta Cancer Board says it hopes to complete a review of cancer cases in the Fort Chipewyan area by the fall. The board operates the Alberta cancer registry and investigates claims of so-called cancer clusters. It became involved in the issue shortly after a local physician, John O’Connor, said residents of the community had unusually high rates of blood, colon, bile-duct and liver cancer.
May 28, 2008
Welcome to our new website!
May 05, 2008
First Nations Market Housing Fund is Open for Business
The Government of Canada is making home ownership a reality for more First Nations people living on reserve. Today, Monte Solberg, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development and Minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians announced the official opening of the First Nations Market Housing Fund.
May 01, 2008
Polluted water persists; Six Nations Waits for Federal Help with Problem Discovered in 2004
Donna and Jody Hill say they long ago gave up hope that the federal government will help fix the problem of contaminated wells on Six Nations land.
Apr 15, 2008
$330M Will Fund Improvements to Drinking Water on First Nations
The federal government is investing $330 million over the next two years to improve the drinking water on First Nations. According to the Health Canada Web site there are currently 92 First Nations under a drinking water advisory in Canada. There are 21 communities in five provinces that have high-risk water systems and drinking water advisories — Ontario with eight, B.C. with seven, Alberta with three, New Brunswick with two, and Quebec with one.
Apr 01, 2008
Chemical Valley: Aamjiwnaang First Nation in Sarnia Sounds Alarm Over Toxins
Members of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation in Sarnia, Ont., think their reserve, which recorded the lowest rate of live male births in the world (two girls born for every boy) and high rates of death, miscarriage and disease, is beyond the saturation point for exposure to pollutants, and the community is making a public plea for action.
Mar 31, 2008
North Coast Declared Off-Limits for Fish Farms
The provincial government has declared B.C.‘s North Coast off-limits to fish farms — at least for now. Agriculture Minister Pat Bell announced yesterday a moratorium on any finfish farms north of Aristazabal Island, 150 kilometres south of the mouth of the Skeena River. Opponents of fish farms, who say the operations pose risks to the environment and wild fish, were pleased.
Mar 27, 2008
Leading Scientists Gather at Local Health Symposium to Discuss Impact of Pollution on Aamjiwnaag
Skewed birth ratios on the Aamjiwnaang First Nation warrant a push for stronger industry emission controls, say some of the country’s leading scientific minds.
Speaking yesterday at an environmental health symposium hosted by Aamjiwnaang First Nation at the Holiday Inn, a trio of medical science experts said reducing emissions is a pressing need.
Mar 18, 2008
CN Facing Charges After 2005 Spill Fouled Alta. Lake
Canadian National Railway is facing federal charges alleging a train derailment destroyed bird and fish habitat when it dumped almost 800,000 litres of oil and other chemicals on the shore of a popular Alberta lake.
Mar 06, 2008
Mercury Threat Rising in Ontario
On the heels of a major international mining convention in Toronto, a broad coalition of environmental groups, First Nations and academics are demanding that the Ontario Government investigate the looming threat of mercury contamination from industrial activities in the province’s Boreal Forest.
Jan 28, 2008
Gov’t of Canada Reports Substantial Progress in Improving First Nation Water Quality
The Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians, today released a progress report on the Plan of Action for Drinking Water in First Nations Communities, outlining improvements made in water quality on reserves across Canada.
