From: Subject: Date: Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:43:53 -0600 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.srj.ca/print_this_story.asp?smenu=1&sdetail=3753 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.5579 Chip Health = Concerns=20 Inconclusive: Jean

MP says good records have not been kept

By SHAWN BELL, = SRJ=20 Reporter

The MP responsible for Fort Chipewyan says while concerns about = cancer in the=20 community are valid, information is inconclusive and further studies = need to be=20 done.
Brian Jean, MP for Fort McMurray-Athabasca, says he has been = keeping=20 close watch on the health concerns in Fort Chipewyan for the past three = years=20 but hasn=92t heard anything conclusive enough to warrant immediate=20 action.
=93Right now the studies have not proved anything, including = health=20 effects,=94 Jean said. =93I=92ve looked closely at the statistical data, = and overall=20 the numbers are very close to the Alberta average.=94
While he = acknowledges the=20 federal government=92s responsibility for First Nations in Fort = Chipewyan, Jean=20 pointed out the responsibility for industry rests on the province, = making it=20 difficult to determine who is responsible overall.
Besides, the MP = said there=20 needs to be further examination of the potential causes.
=93We = don=92t know what=20 the causation is,=94 Jean said. =93Is it Uranium City, or what has been = happening=20 across the lake, or the Bennett dam, or the oilsands that have been = leaking for=20 10,000 years before we got here? The evidence is = inconclusive.=94
Jean said he=20 was promised a new report that would conclusively describe health = problems in=20 Fort Chipewyan during his meeting with community stakeholders two weeks = ago, but=20 hasn=92t received it.
Yet he emphasized the federal government is = taking the=20 issues of water and air pollution very seriously.
=93This is of = great concern=20 to us,=94 he said. =93We=92ve acted very aggressively on water and air=20 quality.=94
And he assured that no matter the discussion of = government=20 responsibility in Fort Chipewyan, if environmental issues are shown to = be=20 directly related to health, action will be taken immediately.
In the = meantime=20 Jean believes better records of health concerns must be kept.
=93I = think good=20 records have not been kept in Fort Chipewyan,=94 he said.=20