Mercury contamination in Grassy Narrows
Environmental & health disaster 1962 - 1970 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Mercury contamination in Grassy Narrows was an uncontrolled discharge of between 9,000 kilograms (20,000 lb) and 11,000 kilograms (24,000 lb) of mercury from the Dryden Mill's chloralkali plant in Dryden into the headwaters of the Wabigoon River in the Kenora District of Northwestern Ontario from 1962 until 1970.[1] It was described as "one of the worst cases of environmental poisoning in Canadian history."[2] The contamination poisoned many people in the Grassy Narrows First Nation and Whitedog First Nation communities.
The Wabigoon River forms a vast river system with the English River—which includes many lakes and tributaries—and together they flow west to the Winnipeg River. This aquatic ecosystem had extensive mercury contamination by 1970, leading to the closure of the commercial fishery and some tourism related businesses.[3] The glacial clay of the area is believed to have facilitated the bioaccumulation of mercury in the ecosystem.[4]: 2207
Clay lake, the first major lake downstream from the Dryden mill, had extremely high mercury levels in predatory fish such as the walleye.[5]: 62 [4]: 2207 These fish, which have been a staple food of First Nations people for generations,[6] became unsafe to eat.[7] Grassy Narrows and Whitedog First Nation communities were severely affected. For generations, many suffered with symptoms of mercury poisoning, including Minamata disease. An expert report in 2016 confirmed that the Wabigoon River was "still highly contaminated" and that "it can be cleaned safely".[8]
The Dryden chloralkali plant and the nearby Dryden Pulp and Paper Company were both subsidiaries of the British multinational, Reed International.