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.
Investment enables water, electricity, and broadband connections for community growth, housing and commercial space The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) and Netmizaaggamig Nishnaabeg (formerly Pic Mobert First Nation) have finalized their agreement for the CIB to lend $7.9 million towards critical infrastructure required for commercial and residential development that will improve living standards on reserve.
The Alberta government is partnering with the Municipal District of Acadia, the Special Areas board and the Canada Infrastructure Bank to continue planning a large-scale irrigation project for east-central Alberta. A total of $7 million is being invested in a two-year study that will explore the feasibility of the project, which proposes to increase water storage by pumping water from the Red Deer River into new reservoirs.
The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) and the shíshálh Nation Government District (sNGD) announced financial close on an agreement, which will see the CIB lend $6.4 million to support a new Port Stalashen Wastewater Treatment Plant through its Indigenous Community Infrastructure Initiative. The plant will be located on shíshálh Nation lands near Sechelt, B.C., and will play a role in enabling economic growth, protecting the coastal environment, and safeguarding public health through improving the outfall. The investment will serve the shíshálh Nation, which represents a population of more than 1,500 members, and lessees on shíshálh Nation Lands (Tsawcome) No. 1.
NDP Infrastructure and Communities Critic Bonita Zarrillo made the following statement: “Last week, Press Progress exposed how the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) plans to privatize water infrastructure across the country. In leaked notes from a CIB board meeting in April 2021, CEO Ehren Cory eagerly proposed letting 'private sector financing' overhaul the provision of water 'assets' – because water has a stable base of 'customers who pay.'
The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB), a federal government financial institution, opened its doors five years ago with great promise, vowing to deploy $35 billion of investments towards “the next generation of infrastructure Canadians need.” But rather than investing public money in public services, the CIB has instead privatized our water, transportation and electricity. For every dollar invested by the CIB, the hope was that $4 to $5 would be invested by the private sector.
Last year, Canadians were battered by wildfires, heat waves and floods, but a new private member’s bill aims to help communities weather the climate crisis. On Feb. 8, NDP MP Niki Ashton tabled a bill that would instruct the Canada Infrastructure Bank to prioritize projects that help the country adapt to or mitigate the effects of climate change. It would also require the bank’s board to have at least three members recommended by Indigenous organizations to represent Inuit, Métis and First Nations people.
Alberta’s government announced Friday a $117.7-million addition to the already $815 million being directed toward capital projects in the irrigation sector. The funding was first announced in 2020 as part of the Investment and Growth Strategy, which aims to kick-start provincial economic recovery. Eight of the province’s 13 irrigation districts are participating. “The program is a 30% Government of Alberta grant,” Richard Phillips, general manager of Bow River Irrigation District and chair of Irrigating Alberta Inc., told the News. “The irrigation districts are paying the remaining 70% of that.”
We finally have a chance to get it right. For the first time in history, Canada has launched a $1 billion investment dedicated to First Nations, Métis and Inuit infrastructure. The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) is establishing the Indigenous Community Infrastructure Initiative (ICII), which will enable the building of new infrastructure projects in Indigenous communities and help generate investments in projects that are vital to economic growth and environmental protection. For decades, the promise of investments and dedicated funding have fallen flat. Limited to what the federal government can fund within their restrictive policies and confined by an infrastructure funding process that is flawed, sluggish and heavy regulated. Resulting in lackluster infrastructure projects that limit Indigenous autonomy and self-determination.
