I clearly remember fishing in Algonquin Provincial Park years ago and seeing signs warning about mercury poisoning in the fish. It was upsetting to realize that the wilderness I loved so much had been contaminated by acid rain.

Now try to imagine how upsetting it would be if that wilderness was your ancestral home and the contaminated fish were both your source of food and your livelihood. 

That is the tragic reality of Grassy Narrows First Nation, an Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) community, located north of Kenora, Ontario. This Indigenous community is situated in Ontario’s boreal forest, alongside the English Wabigoon river system. This pristine location allowed the community to rely on the forests, rivers, and lakes for sustenance and cultural prosperity for as long as their people can remember. That was the case until 1962, when the paper mill in Dryden started operations upstream from the community. 

Over more than a decade, the paper company contaminated the water with an estimated 9 tonnes of highly toxic mercury. The economy of Grassy Narrows, which relied heavily on fishing, was devastated and the toll on the community’s health was tragic. A 2016 study found that over 90% of Grassy Narrows residents showed symptoms of mercury poisoning. The symptoms included tremors, insomnia, memory loss and cognitive and motor dysfunctions. These serious health issues are in addition to high unemployment rates and the loss of traditional ways of life that have been caused by the poisoning of the fish. 

Although the flow of mercury into the water has since been curtailed, problems still persist. A 2024 study from Western University, in London Ontario, found that wastewater from the paper mill combines with the existing mercury in the water to create methylmercury, which actually increases the levels of contamination.

The government has finally started construction of a long-promised Mercury Care home in the community. This facility will eventually provide 22 in-patient beds along with the capacity to provide out-patient care to other affected community members. Lakehead University, in Thunder Bay Ontario, has generously partnered with the Grassy Narrows community in preparing local students to staff the Mercury Care home and to provide culturally appropriate health services. This care home is certainly a step in the right direction but what the community really needs is clean water and edible fish. 

Unfortunately, the promised remediation of the English-Wabigoon river system hasn’t even begun. To make matters worse, the government is trying to fast track a gold mine which would also be situated upstream of the Grassy Narrows community. If approved, this mine could bleed sulphate into the river system, which would add to the methylmercury already being created by the pulp mill’s wastewater.

Fortunately, we don’t have to idly sit back and allow this injustice to continue. On September 23, the community will be hosting ‘River Run 2026: Walk with Grassy Narrows for Mercury Justice’, in Toronto. 

Concerned citizens of all ages can join Grassy Narrows community members as they complete their 1700 KM journey from their home to demand compensation, support and an end to the continuing pollution of their waters. 

I and other Canadian Indigenous Ministry Committee members will be showing solidarity with the Grassy Narrows community by participating in this walk. I would like to encourage you to consider joining us. I believe that spending a Wednesday afternoon in the outdoors, showing support for God’s creation and the people of Grassy Narrows, would be time well spent.

If you are planning on joining us, please send an email to Cindy Stover at [email protected] 

More information can be found here.