Chemical Valley (located outside of Sarnia, Ontario) has the highest concentration of petrochemical plants in Canada. The pollution from these plants disproportionately affects members of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation community.
Every year Aamjiwnaang & Sarnia Against Pipelines (ASAP) hosts Toxic Tours to raise awareness of the chemical valley and the impacts of resource extraction on their community. Aamjiwnaang is surrounded by 40% of Canada's petrochemical industry, with refineries such as Suncor, Shell, DOW Chemicals, and Lanxess as neighbours (among many others).
In addition to existing health hazards from contaminated air and water, there are plans to expand petrochemical industry operations in the region. Among other projects, Enbridge's Line 9 pipeline, which will bring tar sands oil to Quebec via Sarnia, has been approved and is awaiting the green light to start pumping hazardous petroleum for refining in the east end of Montreal and eventual export up the St. Laurence river.
The Chemical Valley is an environmental disaster that just keeps on growing. Industry and government seek to hide from us all the leaks, contamination, and destruction of life that business as usual entails.
The Toxic Tour takes place on the 4th and 5th of September, 2015, and busses are being organized from different cities to bring people to the Tour:
MONTREAL, QC - https://www.facebook.com/events/427557830750855/
If you are interested in taking the bus from Montreal to Aaamjiwnaang, reserve a spot by filling out the following Google Sign-up Form: http://goo.gl/forms/EnWr2qvJHm
There is also a GoFundMe to help cover the expense of the Montreal bus. Please consider donating and spread the word widely: gofundme.com/mtl2toxictour
If you plan on attending the Toxic Tour, regardless of whether you take one of the busses, *PLEASE* fill out this form so that the organizers know how many people to expect over the weekend: https://toxictour2015.wufoo.com/forms/toxic-tour-registration-form/
You can consult the Facebook event for the Toxic Tour here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1652135671666174/
F or more information on Chemical Valley and resistance to environmental racism in Aamjiwnaang please visit these links:
Aamjiwnaang & Sarnia Against Pipelines (ASAP) FB page: https://www.facebook.com/AamjiwnaangSarniaAgainstPipelines
Aamjiwnaang & Sarnia Against Pipelines Website: http://aamjiwnaangsolidarity.com/
Aamjiwnaang Water Project: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/aamjiwnaang-water-project
Indian Givers documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pot411GJzdM
VICE documentary "CANADA'S TOXIC CHEMICAL VALLEY": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnHWZE0M_-k