Grade 9 Science Journal (2022)

Dear the Editor,

The Attawapiskat River and community has already been through so much! They currently have a diamond mine in the community that is not only harming the peoples lives but also the environment and wildlife around them. By adding a second big industry to this area, a dam would be even more harmful to the fish population and having long lasting effects on the community.

Its easy as a leader to say we need green energy and that we need more windmills, solar panels and dams! I totally agree, but you can’t just throw a random dam in a community that is already struggling.

I will break my issues with putting a dam into 2 parts: environmental and social/ economical for you to better understand my concerns…

Environmental

Large dams cause numerous direct impacts on the biological, chemical and physical properties of a river. The dam wall itself blocks fish migrations, which in some cases and with some species completely separate spawning habitats from rearing habitats (International Rivers, 2022).

Although we can think that dams are so good for the environment because they are a renewable resource, its not true, they still release green house gases and create pollution. Dams release hazardous methane gases!

Water that is downstream from a dam usually has a higher salinity content and a lower oxygen concentration than normal. This change in the chemical makeup of the water creates detrimental conditions for species that previously thrived in those areas. Dams also negatively impact ecosystems and habitats upstream.  Trapped river borne nutrients can facilitate the growth of toxic algae blooms. (Earth Law center, 2018).

Social/Economical

In theory you would think putting a dam into a small community like this would lower the unemployment rate and create more jobs for the people who live there, but it doesn’t. Most of the people that live In Attawapiskat haven’t even graduated high school! So, we all know as soon as they put there resume in for a job there, the company is going to tell them that “They aren’t qualified”, and give these open jobs to people far from the community.

Having another big industry will only create more craziness for the town. The people just want a simple community, they don’t want big dams and mines.

Please take the time and watch this video, it shows the state of the community and how it is already being affected by the diamond mine:https://tubitv.com/movies/691519/after-the-last-river?https://tubitv.com/home?utm_source=_dsa_null_broad_legacy_null_films&utm_medium=adwords_cpc&utm_campaign=null-null-ca_nb_variable_search_desktop_google_null_biddable_en_titles&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuoSuqZWd_wIVMXtMCh3iHwJxEAAYASAAEgLzN_D_BwE

Please consider my concerns…

Sincerely, Amelia Snyder

Sources

-International Rivers (2022). Environmental Impacts of Dams https://archive.internationalrivers.org/environmental-impacts-of-dams

-Huron River Watershed Council (October,5th, 2021). Hydroelectric Dams, Methane, and the Huron Riverhttps://www.hrwc.org/dams-methane-huron-river/#:~:text=Methane%20production%20from%20dams%20is,in%20comparison%20to%20carbon%20dioxide

-Earth Law Center. (March, 15th, 2018) Earth Law Center.https://www.earthlawcenter.org/blog-entries/2017/12/dams-climate-change-bad-news#:~:text=Dams%20%3D%20Habitat%20destruction&text=Due%20to%20the%20high%20rate,lower%20oxygen%20concentration%20than%20normal.