After continuous requests from residents for more than 20 years, a federally funded investigation will start to assess the health effects of the oilsands on people living in Fort Chipewyan, an Indigenous settlement in northern Alberta. The community, situated over 200 kilometers north of Fort McMurray, has long suspected a connection between cancers in Fort Chipewyan and the industrial activities upstream along the Athabasca River.
Imperial Oil’s Kearl mine, where a significant wastewater spill occurred in 2023, is approximately 140 kilometers from Fort Chipewyan. The closest project, Suncor Energy’s Fort Hills mine, is more than 90 kilometers away. Researchers will analyze current and past health records, observe local disease patterns, and track both individuals and the environment. They will also evaluate the impact of environmental changes on the community’s culture and daily life.
The study, named Project Monument Hill after a local viewpoint overlooking Fort Chipewyan and Lake Athabasca, will span 10 years and receive $12 million in funding from the federal government. The initiative, announced in August 2024, received initial funding in March for the planning and governance phase.
Ruby Ladouceur, president of the Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation, emphasized the study’s approach combining western scientific methods with Indigenous knowledge of the land. Ladouceur stressed the need to comprehend the relationship between environmental conditions, traditional land use, and the well-being of the community.
Dr. John O’Connor, who has long voiced concerns about cancer in Fort Chipewyan, expressed satisfaction with the study’s initiation but raised concerns about the lengthy 10-year timeline. Previous reports on cancer in Fort Chipewyan primarily focused on medical records and health trends, neglecting individuals who left the community for cancer treatments.
Despite past investigations showing elevated cancer rates in Fort Chipewyan compared to the rest of Alberta, no conclusive evidence linking cancers to industrial exposure was found. Criticism from local leaders highlighted the need for a comprehensive, long-term community health study, distinct from reviewing health statistics. The new study aims to explore how environmental changes have affected the health of Indigenous people and their community, prioritizing environmental impacts over lifestyle factors.
Limited publicly available data hinder the assessment of the connection between cancer in Fort Chipewyan and the environmental alterations caused by oilsands developments. Community members have long voiced concerns about the issue’s widespread impact on every individual in Fort Chipewyan, as conveyed through oral traditions and community discussions.