N.W.T. protesters hold water rally at Alberta legislature
First Nations people from the Northwest Territories held a rally on the front steps of the Alberta legislature Thursday, demanding the province do more to protect water that flows between the two jurisdictions.
About a dozen people came to Edmonton toshow concern over the rapid development in the oilsands, which theysayis harming the rivers that flow north and has led to record low water levels.
The group, whichwas meeting later in the afternoonwithEnvironment Minister Rob Renner,calledon the provinceto impose a moratorium on oilsands development.
Phillip Beaulieu, a Dene who lives in Fort Resolution, saidthe amount of development taking place in Alberta, hundreds of kilometres south of his home, is having a negative effect where he lives.
"The level in the Slave River— where we go hunt, and weget our fish, and we get our moose and the migratory birds that come through — everything has changed," Beaulieu said.
"Last year, it's the lowest it's ever been recorded, to our understanding and our elders are telling us their concerns."
The Slave River isdownstream from the Athabasca River, which is at the heart of the oilsands developments.
Alberta, NWT striking water agreement
A day earlier, the governments of Alberta and the Northwest Territories announced plans are in the works for a water management agreementthat would protect water flowingbetween Albertaand the Northwest Territories.
Michael McLeod, N.W.T. environment and natural resources minister, said both sides hope to have a finalized agreement within three years.
McLeod said more needs to be done beyond the current set of guiding principles about water usage between the two jurisdictions.
"Right now, the guiding principles are just that," he said Thursday. "We, first of all, have to have our own information up to par: we have to be able to analyze and confirm what the quality of our water is and what our water flows are at.
"We're not in this alone," he added. "The federal government is still the water manager of the Northwest Territories, so they're a partner in this."
The federal government did not attend this week's meeting between McLeod and Renner, in which the two ministers discussed several otherinitiatives, including a plan of notification about industrial projects, better communication with the public and the possibility of a future water summit.
But the demonstrators at Thursday's rally said they had heardit all before anddidn't believean agreement would do enough to ensure their waters are safe.
Earlier in March, Bev Yee, Alberta's assistant deputy minister of environmental stewardship, said the provincial government does not believe there is any connection between the oilsands and water levels.
"When we look at our figures, in terms of actual withdrawals, we don't believe the withdrawals are having that kind of an impact."