Eabametoong Chief concerned about hydrocarbon spill after vehicle capsizes in lake near the First Nation – CBC

Nov 11, 2020

After an amphibious vehicle capsized on a lake just upstream from Eabametoong First Nation last week, the community’s chief is raising alarm about the possibility of a hydrocarbon spill and about the way the incident is being handled.

Eabametoong Chief Harvey Yesno called the response to the incident “gross negligence” and “environmental racism on First Nation lands.”

“I think the governments in Manitoba, and Ontario have demonstrated they are in favour of accelerating resource development in favour of the business, so they’ve crafted loose regulations and the laws in such a way as to accelerate and bypass any regulatory measures,” Yesno said.

“That’s what I call environmental racism. You know, it’s on our lands. This land is Treaty 9 land. It’s our territory. And yet the government has passed these laws that allow these companies to do whatever with no slap on the wrist at all.”

Read More: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/eabametoong-vehicle-capsize-opikeigen-lake-1.5798519