Supervised consumption site in Sudbury, Ont. secures temporary funding

Vale Base Metals is Sudbury, Ont. has donated $75,000 to keep the city's supervised consumption site, known as The Spot, open until the end of January.

"I am incredibly grateful and relieved," said Amber Fritz, manager of the supervised consumption site.

Rseau ACCESS Network operates the site, which provides a safe space for people to use drugs, with health-care professionals on site.

"Having even just one month more of services that we can provide to folks who rely on the site is incredible."

Fritz said there has been a lot of concern and anxiety shared by people who access the serviceabout the site shutting down at the end of the month.

"Being able to share with folks that as far as we know we are open until the end of January will offer a bit of a reprieve to folks in the dead of winter who rely on a warm indoor space to safely consume drugs," she said.

The supervised consumption site is currently at risk of shutting their doors due to a provincial funding application pause.

The province paused all funding applications in October after a 44-year-old woman was killed by a stray bullet outside of a supervisedconsumption site in Toronto's east end.

Fritz said they have yet to hear from the provincial government regarding the pause.She said it's extremely concerning as they continue to face an unprecedented crisis of toxic drugs.

"Now is not the time to not provide funding to the only consumption site in the district of Sudbury/Manitoulin," said Fritz

She adds it's another reason they are so grateful and thankful to Vale for stepping up and recognizing that this is a service that deserves to remain open.

Fritz said the volatility of drugs meanspeoplecan't dose appropriately or make an informed decision because there's no quality control.

"As long as we have an unregulated market this is going to continue," said Fritz.

"It is why our services are so important right now because if they consume within the walls of the safe consumption site, we do immediate intervention should something go wrong."

Rseau ACCESS Network has extended an invitation to other industry leaders in the city to stand alongside Vale in hopes they will also step up and help support the site.