Darren Campbell
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 10/98) - The Slave River is healthy.

That is the conclusion of the final report coming out of the Slave River Environmental Quality Monitoring Program that was unveiled in Fort Smith on Aug. 5.

"It's a very clean river," said Brian Latham, who was on hand to present the reports findings. "But it is part of the world and does receive atmospheric depositions and does have developments."

Latham is head of water management and planning for DIAND in Yellowknife. DIAND was one of the key players in the five-year study, which ran from 1990-95.

The study was the first of its kind in the Northwest Territories. Its main objective was to address the concerns Northerners had about contamination of fish, water, and suspended sediment from pulp mill, tar sands, and agricultural developments upstream.

As development increased in those areas during the late 1980s, many of the 5,000 people who live along the NWT portion of the river wanted to know if they could still drink the water and eat the fish.

Latham told the five observers who showed up for the meeting that they can.

"The river appears to be very healthy," said Latham. "But the data has to be reviewed by various health departments."

The report shows the contaminants in the river are not likely to cause adverse effects. The only contaminants of concern found in Walleye, whitefish, burbot, and Northern pike caught for the study were mercury and the pesticide, toxaphene.

Toxaphene levels were high only in burbot liver. Latham said the pesticide probably is coming from the atmosphere, not from developments south of Fort Smith.

He added the mercury problem is from the fact that most of the NWT has a high amount of mercury already in the land. Latham said that means they would expect to find a high amount of mercury in the fish, regardless of development along the river. He noted that the mercury levels shouldn't be a health risk.

"Obviously people have lived here for centuries and have been eating fish with this mercury, and for all intents and purposes there have been no discernible problems," said Latham.

Band questions study

But Salt River First Nation band councillor Henry Beaver said he isn't totally convinced the water in the Slave River is healthy.

Beaver was at the meeting and said what he would like to see is someone from Fort Smith hired on a permanent basis to test the water on the river for contamination.

He said that is one way he will be assured that the water and fish in it are not being contaminated.

"As mush as they say the water is safe, that's what they said about the Titanic," said Beaver.