KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – This weekend’s video is the official trailer for the award winning and stunning documentary People of a Feather, about the unique relationship between Eider ducks and the Inuit on the Belcher Islands in Canada’s Hudson Bay.
Eider down, the warmest feather in the world, allows both Inuit and bird to survive harsh Arctic winters.
Way more than a series of pretty images, the documentary tackles the damage inflicted on this relationship by the massive hydroelectric dams powering New York and eastern North America.
The documentary will be screened in Halifax this Monday, May 13,
Following the screening Grand Riverkeeper Roberta Benefiel will speak about her involvement in the fight against the Muskrat Falls mega-hydro project in Labrador.
See also: Labrador Riverkeeper visits Nova Scotia to raise alarm about Muskrat Falls
Independent researchers from Harvard University, Memorial University in St. John’s, and the University of Manitoba have raised the alarm about the accumulation of methylmercury downstream from the Muskrat Falls development.
“The people here are very worried and concerned about their future, and most importantly about their children and grandchildren’s future, because methylmercury usually stays within the system for three to four decades,” Nunatsiavut Minister of Land and Natural Resources Darryl Shiwak told the Nova Scotia Advocate in April of 2016.
The new research establishes that some residents who lead traditional lifestyle may experience an increase in methylmercury exposure of up to 1500% following reservoir flooding. And almost half the community will exceed the Health Canada guideline for methylmercury exposure.
Methylmercury is a dangerous poison that can cause neurological impairment in developing brains, particularly in cognitive thinking, attention, and memory.
Nova Scotia, via the Maritime Link, stands to benefit from the Muskrat Falls project, as it lessens our dependence on coal-generated electricity. But provincial media and politicians have been silent on the downstream impact of the project.
The screening starts at 6:30 PM, Monday May 13, in Room 1028, Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building, 6100 University Avenue, Halifax.
Check out the Facebook event for all the details.
This event is co-hosted by the School of Resources and Environment Student Society of Dalhousie University, Sierra Club Canada Foundation – Atlantic Chapter, Labrador Land Protectors, Grand Riverkeeper
With a special thanks to our generous donors who make publication of the Nova Scotia Advocate possible.
Subscribe to the Nova Scotia Advocate weekly digest and never miss an article again. It’s free!
