Port Radium

Port Radium is a mining area on the eastern shore of Great Bear Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada.

During a field trip along the east arm of Great Bear Lake in August 1900, James McIntosh Bell of the Geological Survey of Canada noted evidences of iron, copper, uranium and cobalt in the vicinity of Echo Bay.

[10] With the closure of the Eldorado Mine in June 1940, and the general lack of activity, the government closed up the offices at Cameron Bay, and except for a few native families that occupied the abandoned buildings, Port Radium was empty.

In 2007, the Canadian Federal government completed the remediation at Port Radium by removing all remaining infrastructure.

[citation needed] An early case in the Aboriginal rights movement involved the Eldorado Mine's alleged discrimination against First Nations and Inuit workers, such as giving them the last priority when establishing safety services.

The Native Sisterhood made it a national political issue in Canada, and sparked the more famous native-rights activism in Alaska during the 1940s.

[citation needed] A report was released in 2005 challenging the link between uranium mining and cancer at Port Radium.

"[11] Port Radium is located near the Arctic Circle, which means that in December the sun almost does not rise and in June it does not set for 24 hours.