A/HRC/45/12/Add.1 rehabilitation, satisfaction, guarantees of non-repetition, remediation of contamination or an apology. Binding legal standards, enforcement and the rule of law are basic prerequisites. 85. Access to justice remains a considerable challenge, particularly for victims of chronic exposure and vulnerable groups. Obstacles include information asymmetries, an unjust burden of proof on victims and the limited availability of class actions and legal aid.133 The courts remain the preserve of Canadians with sufficient financial resources, leaving out disgruntled rights holders with inadequate capacity to pursue legal avenues, further embedding them in disadvantaged positions. The overlapping jurisdictions among the territories, the provinces and the federal Government, notwithstanding the crossjurisdictional impacts of toxic exposure, contribute to the lack of clarity on the proper forum for seeking justice. Indigenous women have found it especially difficult to pursue discrimination cases for various reasons, including jurisdictional confusion and because the particular form of discrimination experienced is not clearly delineated under the Canadian Human Rights Act.134 86. There appears to be a pervasive trend of inaction by the Government in the face of existing health threats from decades-long historical and current environmental injustices and the cumulative impacts of toxic exposure on indigenous peoples. 135 The case of Grassy Narrows and White dog is emblematic of indigenous communities being denied truth, justice, remedies and accountability for decades.136 The failure to provide these communities with an effective remedy for 50 years, still enduring the impacts of 10 tons of highly toxic mercury dumped in their rivers legally and without their consent, is a clear case of discrimination and a gross violation of their human rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The failure to investigate claims of aerial spraying of glyphosate on indigenous territories and lands illustrates the systemic challenge that continues today. 87. Initiatives such as the Contaminated Sites On-Reserve Program, the First Nations Waste Management Initiative and the Northern Contaminants Program present opportunities for action, including on waste management and decontamination. 137 Scaling up such programmes may be useful for achieving greater involvement of indigenous peoples. Improving capacity and increasing institutional support to marginalized communities towards self-governance and for strengthening their own mechanisms established to address environmental protection should be prioritized. 88. Other cases have raised questions about compliance and enforcement. For example, the selenium pollution from coal mines in the Elk Valley has raised concerns about lack of compliance with water quality guidelines at the provincial and federal levels, resulting in transboundary pollution from British Columbia into the United States of America. Government and industry efforts should strengthen compliance and enforcement mechanisms to prevent the repetition of similar incidences. 89. The 2014 Mount Polley tailings dam disaster has illustrated the need for enhanced accountability measures to help prevent recurrence. Canada has the second-highest number of tailings dams in the world (256), and has the fifth-highest number of upstream dams categorized as high-risk. 138 Preventable dam failures may occur in the future, especially without sufficient early detection mechanisms at the federal and provincial levels, including independent and dedicated investigation, compliance and enforcement teams.139 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 18 www.cba.org/CBAMediaLibrary/cba_na/images/Equal%20Justice%20%20Microsite/PDFs/EqualJusticeFinalReport-eng.pdf; www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/jspsjp/op00_2-po00_2/op00_2.pdf. www.chrc-ccdp.gc.ca/eng/content/honouring-strength-our-sisters-increasing-access-human-rightsjustice-indigenous-women-and. A/HRC/38/48/Add.1, para. 49, A/HRC/10/7/Add.3, A/HRC/18/35/Add.1 and E/C.12/CAN/CO/4E/C.12/CAN/CO/5. Submissions by the Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek (2019) and Lynda Collins (2019). Submission by Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (2019); www.sacisc.gc.ca/eng/1583779185601/1583779243216. https://graphics.reuters.com/MINING-TAILINGS1/0100B4S72K1/index.html. https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2015MEM0030-002119.