Federal ministers to be questioned over Fort Chipewyan dock [Video]

A federal committee will grill cabinet ministers over Transport Canada’s failure to inform Indigenous communities about water and soil contamination at a dock in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta.

The federal Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development passed a motion by NDP MP Laurel Collins summoning cabinet ministers, Indigenous leaders and experts to testify about the contamination and communication breach.

“It is particularly egregious that the government knew about the contaminated dock at least since 2017 and that there haven’t been steps to address it,” Collins told Canada’s National Observer in a phone interview. The health of First Nations must be given priority, she added.

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Sediment and groundwater samples from a 2017 Transport Canada study showed nickel, arsenic and harmful hydrocarbons exceeded guidelines in many samples near the dock where community members swim and fish. Both …