Innu elder enlists opponents to Churchill hydro project

A respected Innu elder is marshalling opposition to Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro's plans for a massive hydroelectric project on the Churchill River.

"A few people [are] not happy what's going to happen [on the] Churchill River if the government puts in another dam…. We got to do something," said Elizabeth Penashue.

On Friday, Newfoundland and Labrador Environment Minister Clyde Jackman called for an environmental impact statement for the Lower Churchill project.

Penashue is unhappy that the Innu Nation— which represents about 2,000 people in the communities of Natuashish and Sheshatshiu— has entered into negotiations on a deal that would allow the Lower Churchill project to proceed.

The provincial government has offered the Innu Nation an ownership stake in the proposed megaproject, which if fully developed would have about 2,800 megawatts of power and could potentially provide energy for 1.5 million households.

Penashue said the Innu's elected leaders are not listening to the concerns of elders. To help draw attention to the issue, Penashue has each summer for the last nine years paddled her canoe from Churchill Falls to the Gull Island rapids, one of the two sites that Hydro would like to develop.

A Gull Island dam would flood 85 kilometres of shoreline in that area and would increase mercury levels in the water, Penashue said.

"Those long beaches [are] very, very beautiful," she said. "[I] worry about what's going to happen— everything is going to be under the water."

Daniel Ashini, president of the Innu Nation, did not agree to a recorded interview, but told CBC News that when a deal with Hydro is reached, Innu themselves will decide the fate of the proposal in a vote.

Métis seek benefits agreement

Meanwhile, other groups— including environmentalists and the Labrador Métis Nation — are expressing concerns about the project.

There are fears the development may destroy traditional Innu sites and historic Métis trap lines.

'If our people give up that river, then we're giving up our past, our identity.' —Chris Montague

"My father's heart was in this trap line, to his dying day," said Labrador Métis Nation president Chris Montague.

"If our people give up that river, then we're giving up our past, our identity."

Montague wants an impact and benefits agreement for Métis. Otherwise, he said, his group will challenge the project in court.

Environmental activist Eldred Davis cautions supporters of the project to be careful.

"People in favour of the dam, I think they owe it to themselves to look at some of the facts and not the propaganda that's coming out of St. John's," he said.

"They want a dam. They don't really care what happens to the river or the people who live nearby the river."