Toxic Divide
By Sabrina Sgro
This post is part of a series of opinion pieces in diverse mediums focusing on the theme “What makes you mad about global health?” These submissions are by McGill students who were part of the course PPHS 511 Fundamentals of Global Health in Fall 2021.
Indigenous and racialized communities in Canada are disproportionately affected by pollution, causing them to experience increased adverse health effects.
Environmental racism refers to the injustice faced by racialized communities as it pertains to the environment. Most Canadians benefit from industrial development, however, the pollution and toxic chemical by-products that originate from industrial processes such as oil refineries and factories are environmental hazards. In Canada, Indigenous communities are disproportionately affected by these hazards (1). Indigenous peoples suffer from the downstream effects of toxic waste being dumped in close proximity to their communities, as well as air pollution from smoke stacks and contaminants in the water (2). The Aamjiwnaang First Nations Reserve is located in Sarnia, Ontario, where 62 industrial facilities make up an area known as ‘Chemical Valley’ (3). High concentrations of particulate matter in the air are thought to be linked with increased incidence of cancer and asbestos poisoning for the inhabitants of this reserve (3). Similarly, Grassy Narrows First Nation in Kenora, Ontario is still suffering the effects from mercury being dumped into the Wabigoon River by a chemical plant in the 60’s and 70’s (4).
All people should have the right to a healthy environment, but systemic racism in Canada has led to environmental injustice for marginalised communities through the lack of oversight that the government has shown in regulating industrial waste. When polluting corporations break the laws that do exist, they are not held accountable as these laws are poorly enforced, leaving affected Indigenous communities to be neglected (2, 5). Environmental racism in Canada contributes to the health disparities documented between Indigenous people and the rest of the population and is thus relevant to global health.
The collage aims to represent the differences in environmental wellbeing between communities affected by environmental racism and other Canadian communities. Ample green space, clean air and healthy living are depicted on the top of the collage while smoke stacks, industrial activities and pollution are depicted on the bottom. The words ‘Toxic Divide’ in the middle of the page aim to highlight these discrepancies. Finally, the smoke rising from the stacks on the right side of the page is overlapping with the upper part of the division, representing how this issue is relevant to all Canadians, not just those who lack a healthy environment.
References:
Hoover E, Cook K, Plain R, Sanchez K, Waghiyi V, Miller P, et al. Indigenous peoples of North America: environmental exposures and reproductive justice. Environ Health Perspect. 2012;120(12):1645-9.
Fernández-Llamazares Á, Garteizgogeascoa M, Basu N, Brondizio ES, Cabeza M, Martínez-Alier J, et al. A State-of-the-Art Review of Indigenous Peoples and Environmental Pollution. Integr Environ Assess Manag. 2020;16(3):324-41.
Kramer D, McMillan K, Gross E, Kone Pefoyo AJ, Bradley M, Holness DL. From Awareness to Action: The Community of Sarnia Mobilizes to Protect its Workers from Occupational Disease. New Solut. 2015;25(3):377-410.
Philibert A, Fillion M, Mergler D. Mercury exposure and premature mortality in the Grassy Narrows First Nation community: a retrospective longitudinal study. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2020;4:e141-e8. 5. Basu N, Lanphear BP. The challenge of pollution and health in Canada. Can J Public Health. 2019;110(2):159-64.
Acknowledgments:
We would like to thank Professor Madhukar Pai for setting and sharing this assignment results with us and the teaching assistants Alexandra Jaye Zimmer, Lavanya Huria and Angie Sassi for their support in coordinating the results.