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Cowichan Tribes is calling on the federal government to take responsibility for an unauthorized dumping site on its reserve lands, saying the contamination of Indigenous lands is a national issue that Ottawa has long failed to address.
cheknews.ca
Cowichan Tribes calls illegal dumping a ‘generational, systemic’ problem and urges federal action 10 Nov 25
Cowichan Tribes is calling on the federal government to take responsibility for an unauthorized dumping site on its reserve lands, saying the contamination of Indigenous lands is a national issue that Ottawa has long failed to address.
In a statement issued Monday, Cowichan Tribes said it has been trying for more than a decade to stop illegal dumping and unlicensed gravel and timber removal
on the site at 5544 Indian Road in Duncan, but its efforts have been limited by federal jurisdiction.
“Pollution and contamination of reserve land is a generational, systemic, and national problem,” the First Nation said in its statement.
“The tools to combat the pollution of reserve lands are primarily under federal jurisdiction, including the Indian Act and the Indian Reserve Waste Disposal Regulations. However, the Government of Canada is reluctant to prosecute polluters.”
Cowichan Tribes said it has repeatedly issued cease-and-desist orders to people and companies involving in dumping at the site and has met with officials from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Health Canada, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, as well as the RCMP.
Despite those efforts, Cowichan Tribes says it lacks the authority to enforce or remediate the affected parcels of land because they remain under federal jurisdiction, and aren’t covered by the Cowichan Tribes Land Code.
“The Government of Canada owes ongoing duties to Cowichan Tribes and its Citizens to continue to work in good faith with Cowichan Tribes to resolve such outstanding grievances with respect to lands matters,” it said.
Cowichan Tribes confirmed it has been cooperating with the province’s investigation into the site since 2021 and welcomes the recent attention.
“Cowichan Tribes is pleased to see the site finally get the attention it deserves. It is our hope that the Federal government will now fulfill its long overdue responsibility to take action to address the site,” it said in its statement.
Last week, media outlets in B.C. including CHEK News reported that the B.C. Ministry of Environment had
ordered the cleanup of the site, citing a large accumulation of construction debris, imported soil with elevated metals and other potentially contaminated materials near the Cowichan River.
The order, issued Oct. 2, requires James Anthony Peter (a band member) to halt dumping on three lots and hire a qualified professional to develop a remediation plan.
A 2023 report prepared for the province found the site was leaching toward the Cowichan River and identified hazardous substances including arsenic, lead, zinc and hydrocarbons.
That report estimated the dumping pile at the time was made up of 40 per cent construction and demolition waste, 25 per cent imported soil and 20 per cent wood and land-clearing debris as well as smaller amounts of broken concrete, tires and household garbage.
Cowichan Tribes says it has long prioritized environmental stewardship in Quw’utsun territory, pointing to decades of watershed restoration, co-governance work and community cleanup programs.
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