By Julia Magsombol
Local Journalism Initiative
Wildsight stands with the Ktunaxa First Nation concerning their calls for the U.S. and Canada to address watershed pollution.
“The Canadian federal government has since failed to meaningfully address this, leading many in the U.S., including Montana Senator Jon Tester, to propose an investigation into the issue without Canadian federal support,” said Simon Wiebe, Wildsight’s mining analyst.
The U.S. and Canada collaborated in March promising to reach an agreement and statement by the end of summer 2023 regarding the cross-border pollution in the Elk and Kootenay rivers. However, the Ktunaxa community has not seen any progress. Read https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2023/03/24/prime-minister-trudeau-and-president-biden-joint-statement
Wiebe explained the cross-border pollution problem in the Elk and Kootenay watersheds can affect the river system, the animals, and the clean drinking water for people.
He explained that Teck Resources performs coal mining in Elk Valley. This causes a lot of waste rock to be removed from the mountainside, which is then stored in the valley, where it is subject to weathering. Wiebe said that this weathering is not good as it produces many pollutants, which can flow into the Elk River and downstream into Lake Koocanusa, where it enters the Kootenay River system and crosses the border to the U.S.
He said the aquatic insect and fish populations can be affected by this as well.
The pollutants from the weathering consists of selenium. The selenium can be vital to animal life in small doses but very quickly becomes harmful in higher quantities, where it causes harm to aquatic insect and fish populations. Many marine animals are affected with warped spines or missing gill plates.
Selenium levels can also affect people’s access to clean drinking water. Wiebe explained that the levels in the Elk River are so high that municipal and private wells near the river have selenium levels above Canada’s drinking water guidelines in certain periods of the year, requiring Teck to provide filtration systems or deliver drinking water to Elk Valley families.
“Downstream, selenium levels continue to be a problem, with concentrations in Lake Koocanusa violating Montana’s water quality standards and U.S. Federal E.P.A. regulations. Many members of the Transboundary Ktunaxa refuse to eat fish from the river anymore, as many species have elevated levels of selenium in their flesh and organs,” said Wiebe.
Wiebe noted they are working with several residents who own private wells outside of the municipal area in the Elk Valley; these families have been provided with bottled water or a reverse osmosis filtration system by Teck.
Based on the statement by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden, they are committed to “reach an agreement in principle by this summer to reduce and mitigate the impacts of water pollution in the Elk-Kootenay watershed in partnership with tribal nations and Indigenous Peoples to protect the people and species that depend on this vital river system.”
Wiebe said the Transboundary Ktunaxa have been calling for a resolution to the water quality issue for more than a decade. And Ktunaxa Nation Chair Kathryn Teneese said there has not been a single multi-government meeting to discuss solutions.
“While the United States has met regularly with the full transboundary Ktunaxa Nation staff, Canada has not done the same. And there hasn’t been any meetings among the U.S., Canada, and the Ktunaxa Nation together despite our repeated requests and numerous opportunities and ample time for that to occur,” said Teneese.
Moving forward, in November the Ktunaxa Nation hosted a discussion among Indigenous, Canadian, and U.S. officials aimed at moving towards a resolution to the water quality issues.
Wildsight eagerly awaits the Canadian federal government’s support for a full International Joint Commission investigation in hopes that it will lead to an open and transparent process that focuses on Ktunaxa and Indigenous rights.
“Wildsight is grateful to everyone who has engaged on this issue. We are concerned that Indigenous rights, environmental stewardship and the public interest are being overridden by economic interests/considerations,” Wiebe concluded. For more information, read the press release at https://www.ktunaxa.org/ktunaxa-nation-calls-for-meeting-with-canada-and-u-s-to-address-watershed-pollution.
