Lake Winnipeg pollution hurting livelihood, First Nation's fishers say

Pickerel. Yellow. Look at that beauty. That's our beauty. With every pull, the catch grows. Untangling fish, cutting a net, one at a time. Russell Kirkness has lived off Lake Winnipeg for decades. All my boys learned to walk on that big steel boat out there, on the water. Way of life, you know, the mothers, the children, my case even, and then we couldn't do it no more. The reason keeps building up in the water. Algae almost toppling this buoy, depleting the lake from oxygen and sunlight. If there's algae in that water and it's just thick, there's very little or no fish at all. Tubs filled with fish started coming less often, so Kirkness, a commercial fisher since 1978, discouraged his children from following his steps, and he blames contamination for it. You got to make money, you got to survive, you got to feed your family. Lake Winnipeg is not going to provide that. Fisher River is one of 11 first nations suing Canada's Attorney General, Manitoba government and the city of Winnipeg over pollution in this lake, deteriorating the quality of fish many families rely on. The lawsuit claims it has been happening for decades, discharges of not only treated but also untreated waste water from the city into the Red and Assiniboine rivers, including raw sewage that allegedly drained to the lake, filling it with excess nutrients favoring algae blooms. At this shack where fish are dressed Don Amos says fishers like him have less cleaning to do when the algae thickens nets are weighed down, even broken, leaving less chance of a catch. The water is dirty, we don't know if they're doing anything about it, but we still come out and lake and fish because we have to make a living. According to the claim, fish are also dying from pollutants, and the industry is losing financially. I think when you see these algae blooms, it's very difficult, it's very depressing. Lorne Cochran is Fisher River's Director of Operations. He says there are over 100 licensed fishers, and besides contaminations, warming weather has shortened their catching season by a month. They are bracing for a tough fall. It is getting worse, and if it doesn't get any better, what are we leaving for our future? In separate statements of defense, Canada's Attorney General says Winnipeg is responsible for its wastewater system. The province denied failure to monitor it and says water quality has been sufficient to support commercial fishing. And the city claims wastewater operations are not responsible for what's alleged in the suit. This case hasn't been heard in court. Taking care of the lake could include the soil around it. Elliot Wilson is a student researcher working with Fisher River. He says the First Nation wants to preserve peat moss, a kind of soil that filters excess nutrients from watersheds and stream runoff, before it gets to Lake Winnipeg, helping reduce the spread of algae. I truly believe that if we want to have true reconciliation, it's having these conversations and discussions. We talk about economic development, and with that comes the fishery industry, right? And so it's important that we protect our fisheries the best we can. The First Nation wants a number of interlake areas protected from new large-scale industrial developments. A formal proposal will be tabled to the province later this year. Regardless of how it happens, Kirkness hopes there's more of these afternoons, turning the catch into a meal. I'm the last. I'm the last commercial fisherman from this little clan. And that's sad. I enjoyed that lake. We had such a good time. We have such good memories. We grew together. We were a family together. A future he wants all our generations to live rather than wish for. Santiago Arias Orozco, CBC News, Fisher River, Cree Nation.