Activists for Indigenous rights blockade the main road into the Brady Road landfill, just outside of Winnipeg, Monday, July 10, 2023, after the city issued an order to vacate the blockade site by Monday at noon. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski
WINNIPEG – A lawyer representing some of those demonstrating at a Winnipeg landfill has asked for an adjournment during a court hearing on an injunction to end the blockade.
Dozens of protesters have blocked the main road to the Brady Road landfill demanding a search of a different landfill north of the city, called Prairie Green, where it’s believed the remains of two slain Indigenous women were dumped last year.
The City of Winnipeg filed an application Tuesday to the Court of King’s Bench seeking the removal of protesters.
Lawyer Sacha Paul told court there is no urgency for a decision because an alternate road to the landfill has been opened, but the city says it is not meant to handle a large volume of heavy trucks.
The blockade began last week after Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson said the province would not support a search of the other landfill, pointing to a study that said it could cost $184 million, pose safety risks and not have guaranteed success.
Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller called Manitoba’s move heartless and says it made arriving at a decision on the search this summer “logistically impossible.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 13, 2023.
