Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
The Katzie First Nation is suing B.C. Hydro and the province for allegedly breaching legal commitments to mitigate damage caused by the Alouette hydroelectric dam. In a news release, Chief Grace George said the Alouette watershed, about 50 kilometres east of Vancouver on the north side of the Fraser Valley, is an area that's been "significant to Katzie First Nation members ... since time immemorial."