Title: Canadian First Nations leaders in Temagami region declare ban on herbicide spaying after glyphosate spill
[CBC 20 Sept by Kate Rutherford] -- A spill of concentrated herbicide on the Canadian homeland of Teme-Augama Anishnabai and Temagami First Nation is spurring leaders to declare a ban on aerial herbicide spraying used in forestry practices on their territory.
Temagami First Nation said that on Sept.10, a truck carrying Glysil concentrate, a glyphosate formulation, overturned on Eagle Lake Road, spilling 600 litres into a ditch. Glyphosate is a non-selective herbicide used to kill weeds and grasses and is used in forestry management.
Health Canada has concluded glyphosate is safe for humans in very small amounts, but that is controversial given the World Health Organization said in 2015 that there is a cancer risk associated with glyphosate exposure.
A spokesperson for the Ontario environment ministry said Apex Helicopters currently holds the herbicide licence for the application of glyphosate in the area and was responsible for the product at the time of the spill.
But First Nations leadership say the spill is "the last straw". Teme-Augama Anishnabai and Temagami First Nation have mobilized their own community guardians to conduct soil sampling and testing to assess the extent of the contamination from the spill.Together, the political organizations say they are asserting their stewardship over their homeland, they call N'dakimenan, in declaring a ban on aerial spraying. The territory covers about 10,000 square kilometres, a geographical area that falls under the management of the Crown corporation, the Temagami Forest Management Corporation (TFMC) and makes up more than half of it.
Teme-Augama Anishnabai second Chief John Turner said the lives and culture of citizens are tied to the land noting they can't harvest for periods of time after spraying has taken place.
"We are tired of having to continually dodge and relocate our cultural activities to evade this unnatural scourge from the sky," he said in the press release.
"The forest is and has always been, our garden, our park, our schoolyard, our medicine cabinet, our home—we too are concerned for the health of our children, but we understand that their health is inextricably linked to the health of the living environment that cultivates them."
