|
Fort William First Nation is rich in ecological treasures. One of the treasures that need to be focused upon with more attention is our watershed. If we do not conscientiously protect our watershed we will lose one of the most valuable treasures needed to ensure a healthy and prosperous Fort William First Nation
In a 2007 Economic Development Report, published by the Fort William First Nation Development Corporation, the main theme is to prosper from the water that is located on our reserve. The area that is outlined for future development is Loch Lomond. The Fort William First Nation Development Corporation has four plans for this area, which include: generating electricity, the sale of bulk industrial water; establish a new Water Treatment Plant for the Fort William First Nation, and a bottling water plant. Although this means for potential prosperity in the future, the future of our water supply needs to be sustained using an ecosystem-based approach and the precautionary principle.
Water is not a separate entity from the land that we, First Nations people, live. Water is a means of sustaining the life of our community. Currently, we are fortunate enough to have a freshwater reserve. This little portion of water that exists on our land needs to be used wisely to ensure the future generations of Fort William First Nation people can enjoy this resource.
There are other parts of our land that are not so fortunate. The run-off and leachate from the illegal Squaw Bay Road Dump flows into our watershed. The area of our watershed that works the hardest to clean the toxins are the swamps and marshes. These are also areas that are only more recently thought of as important areas. These areas are often thought of as being dirty and stinky, but they are incredibly important.
Our wetland areas improve the quality of our water. Wetlands filter out pollutants, return filtered water to the watershed, reduce amount of flooding, and are rich in biodiversity. The giant sponge effect of wetlands is very important to our watershed and they need to be conserved.
Whether it is the land, the water or the people, they all need to be sustained. We are all connected. The AGG is working to protect the health of the Fort William First Nation people with relation to the environment; using our watershed sensibly is an important step towards protecting our health.
For more information on why water should be protected on Fort William First Nation, see the Indigenous Environmental Network's webpage called Water is Life.
|
