A report prepared by a church inquiry has criticised the Manitoba Hydro-owned Churchill-Nelson hydro project in northern Manitoba, Canada.
The Report of the Interchurch Inquiry into Northern Hydro Development says hydroelectric dams and changing water levels have flooded hunting areas, submerged sacred burial grounds, destroyed fish-spawning areas and coloured clear water with perpetual silt in native communities near the Nelson and Churchill Rivers. The report recommends that northern Manitoba First Nations should be compensated by the Canadian federal and provincial governments, to make up for underfunding of communities affected by hydro flooding.
The report also recommends that Manitoba Hydro pay water fees to First Nations affected by the utility's dams and that new dams should not proceed until reparations have been made.
