Researchers are trying to determine why few boys are being born into the Aamjiwnaang First Nation of Ontario.

The percentage of boys started dropping below 50 percent in 1993, a tribal member discovered. Now, only 30 percent of newborns are boys

The finding has sparked alarm among tribal members. They point to pollutants from nearby chemical factories. According to the Associated Press, the reserve is surrounded by the largest concentration of petrochemical manufacturing in Canada.

Studies have shown elevated levels of dioxin, PCBs, pesticides and heavy metals including arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury on the reserve. Other statistics show that one in four Aamjiwnaang children suffer from behavioral or learning disabilities and that they suffer from asthma at nearly three times the national rate. Four of 10 women have had at least one miscarriage or stillbirth.

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Pollution on native reservation is probed (AP 12/18)