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.
A water quality advisory is being issued for the Wilderness Mountain area due to elevated concentrations of manganese. This water quality advisory is in addition to the existing boil water advisory for the Wilderness Mountain water service area. According to the Capital Regional District (CRD), manganese is a naturally occurring element that is present throughout the environment and can normally be found in many surface and groundwater sources.
According to a Capital Regional District official, finding free-living nematodes, even deceased ones, at a drinking water tap in the Greater Victoria Drinking Water System is highly unlikely. “While Greater Victoria’s drinking water is unfiltered, it receives multiple stages of disinfection treatment that would kill any aquatic organism before the water reaches the consumer’s taps,” said Andy Orr.
A new 30-year plan for the Greater Victoria water supply proposes nearly $2 billion in infrastructure spending, including $1 billion for the region's first-ever water filtration plant. The Capital Regional District's (CRD) water experts say a growing population and the impacts of climate change mean they need to access more water, and do more to clean it, before sending it into households. Ted Robbins, the head of integrated water services for the regional district, said while the expense may seem large, these projects are "absolutely necessary for this region, in terms of providing a safe and reliable water supply."
A non-profit organization in Salt Spring Island, B.C., dedicated to fighting climate change is encouraging residents to take advantage of the rain this fall by installing a rainwater collection system. Transition Salt Spring (TSS), with the help of the Capital Regional District, piloted the Rainwater Harvesting Rebate program on Oct. 1, which offers homeowners $250 to $500 for installing cisterns to catch and store rainwater on their property.
