The Daily UbuntuThread 04 · Climate and Our Relationship to the Land · September 25, 2026
Breathing next to Chemical Valley
In 2024, benzene spikes led Aamjiwnaang, near Sarnia, to declare a state of emergency, then to a pilot project against environmental racism.
1 · The scene
At a daycare in Montreal's east end, the educator checks the air quality index before the outing to the park. Today, it's "poor." The children protest; she brings out the blocks and the songs.
That evening, waiting for her bus, she wonders who decides where the smokestacks go, and why it is so often the same neighbourhoods that keep their windows closed. She promises herself she will go to the next public consultation.
Original vignette
2 · The documented case
Aamjiwnaang and benzene
The Aamjiwnaang First Nation lives next to Sarnia, Ontario, at the heart of what is known as Canada's "Chemical Valley." More than 60 petrochemical plants are located in the area. The band council office sits directly across from an INEOS Styrolution plant.
On April 16, 2024, a sensor there recorded an hourly spike of benzene, a carcinogen, of 115 micrograms per cubic metre, while Ontario's guideline is 2.3. Several members fell ill. The band office, the daycare and the resource centre closed temporarily, and the community declared a state of emergency on April 25.
A response followed. In May 2024, Ontario suspended the plant's production, and a federal emergency order imposing measures against benzene emissions was extended for two years. Then, in February 2025, Aamjiwnaang and Environment and Climate Change Canada created a joint committee on contaminants in the air, water and soil, a pilot project to act against environmental racism.
Change began with people who measured, testified and refused to stay silent. Listening to those who breathe the air first is taking care of everyone who breathes it after them.
3 · The voice
“We've lost so many people to various cancers and respiratory illnesses.”
4 · The question
If the air you breathe passed first through your neighbours' lungs, how would you want us to decide together what comes out of the smokestacks?
Sources
- The Narwhal, "Inside Chemical Valley's state of emergency," April 29, 2024. thenarwhal.ca
- Canada's National Observer, "Feds extend Chemical Valley benzene order for two years," May 29, 2024. www.nationalobserver.com
- The Narwhal, "In Sarnia, Aamjiwnaang First Nation and Canada tackle environmental racism," February 11, 2025. thenarwhal.ca
Every figure on this page links to a verifiable public source.
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