Cheers greet news that reserve will be moved

CBC || October 29, 2005

[KDR: This is nice that the goverment is trying to fix a problem that it created. What about the other "100 First Nations communities that are in a boil-water situation"? Do we relocate them? This is a painful example of why we shouldn't allow the government to have too much control over our standard of living.]

Cheers went up in a recreation centre in Sudbury on Thursday night when the people who had to leave their homes on the Kashechewan First Nation found out Ottawa had promised to relocate their town.

"Hip, hip, hooray," shouted some of the Cree from the troubled northern Ontario community. "It's about time!"

The federal government reached a deal with native leaders late Thursday to move the community to higher ground overlooking James Bay, a short distance from the flood plain where it now stands.

The plan includes new homes for everyone, along with a new water treatment plant, band council office, health centre and recreation centre. The project is projected to take 10 years to complete, with water treatment the first priority.

Article Posted at www.KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com

Nearly 250 people were airlifted out of Kashechewan this week because of medical problems associated with the reserve's contaminated water supply.

Kashechewan has been under a boil-water order for two years. Two weeks ago, people learned that their drinking and bathing water was tainted with E. coli bacteria, despite the addition of high amounts of chlorine.

They say the bad water has aggravated skin conditions such as impetigo, scabies and eczema, as well as contributed to chronic diarrhea problems.

Despite feeling joy over the relocation plan, the residents are still angry over how long it took to earn the victory.

"The question that comes to my mind is how many years did it take off my life," said Jenesse Martin, who was flown out of Kashechewan along with her young children.

She points to the reserve's federally maintained water treatment plant, with an intake pipe located downstream from Kashechewan's sewage lagoon, as the source of the long-standing problem.

"Last year, they were saying it was just in a few houses, and I'm saying, 'How could it just be in a few houses if it pumps to all?'

"I think they hid some things from us."

Teacher Jacquelaine DuChaine said she's upset over the conflicting stories she was told about the state of the reserve's water.

"They had a very good filter system in the high school, so we were relying on that for our safety, and just a few days ago, they announced to us even the water we were using from the filter system was not safe.

"So we were drinking the water ... There was a lot of health problems with the students."

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