Paper and pulp industry in Dryden, Ontario

Dryden Mill in 2008

The Dryden pulp mill, also known as the Reed Mill, is a paper and pulp mill in Dryden, Ontario. During the 1960s and 70s, mercury poisoning from the mill caused one of Canada's worst environmental disasters: Dryden Chemicals Ltd dumped mercury into the English-Wabigoon River, upstream of Grassy Narrows First Nation, poisoning the fish which were their staple food.[1] Members of the Grassy Narrows and the Whitedog communities downstream from the mill suffered severe mercury poisoning.[2]

The first iteration of the mill was initially built by Charles and Grant Gordon in 1909 on the west side of the Wabigoon River[3] From the early twentieth century to the twenty-first century, the forest industry has played a significant role in Dryden's economy.[4]

In 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Weyerhaeuser Company and Resolute Forest Products—previously known as Abitibi-Consolidated—are responsible for remediating the mercury contamination.[5] The environmental poisoning continues to cause significant health problems for the First Nations communities downstream.[5][6] The Government of Canada is building a $20 million clinic to treat the First Nations "suffering from mercury poisoning".[7]

Since a USD $520 million purchase of the mill by Domtar from Weyerhaeuser, in 2007 the mill has produced Northern Bleached Softwood Kraft pulp product.

  1. ^ Porter, Jody (2016). "Children of the poisoned river". CBC News. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  2. ^ Kinghorn, April; Solomon, Patricia; Chan, Hing Man (January 1, 2007). "Temporal and spatial trends of mercury in fish collected in the English–Wabigoon river system in Ontario, Canada". Science of the Total Environment. 372 (2): 615–623. Bibcode:2007ScTEn.372..615K. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2006.10.049. ISSN 0048-9697. PMID 17161450. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference DHS_20091025 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference women was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b "Supreme Court rules companies are responsible for cleanup of Grassy Narrows site". Global News. December 6, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lancet_Philibert_20200401 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Aiken, Mike (October 9, 2020). "New chief at Grassy Narrows". Kenora on Line. Retrieved March 5, 2021.