Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

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.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

Coca-Cola

Flavoured Sparkling Waters Are Trending—But Are They Actually Good for You?

Flavoured Sparkling Waters Are Trending—But Are They Actually Good for You?

LaCroix is, arguably, the trendiest and most popular flavoured sparkling water brand in Canada. (And yes, the company pronounces their brand name as “la croy,” which is maddening for anyone who has studied French.) Despite having been founded back in the 1980s (in La Crosse, Wisconsin, near the St. Croix River), the brand did not come to Canada until 2017, following a brand resurgence stateside. Bubly, by PepsiCo, was launched in 2018 with the Canadian crooner Michael Bublé as a brand spokesman. Around the same time, the more traditional, green-glass brands Perrier and San Pellegrino soon came out with two new flavours of their popular fizzy waters (in 2017 and 2018, respectively). Then there’s Aha by Coca-Cola, which just launched in 2020. But no matter the brand, the offering is the same: seltzer with hints of a simple fruity flavour, made with zero calories and zero sugar.

City of Ottawa aims to stop selling bottled water at its facilities

City of Ottawa aims to stop selling bottled water at its facilities

The City of Ottawa has plans to stop selling water in plastic bottles on city property by the end of June. In a memo being presented this week at the community and protective services committee, city staff say they are working with Coca-Cola to replace their bottled water in city vending machines with other Coca-Cola products. Due to contact obligations, it would cost the city $574,000 to simply remove all Coca-Cola products from the machines outright. That's because contract includes a binding minimum value commitment (MVC) that remains in place until 115,000 cases of drinks have been sold.

How many litres of water are taken in Quebec to be sold in bottles? It's a secret

How many litres of water are taken in Quebec to be sold in bottles? It's a secret

Quebec environment groups say they are going to court to lift the veil on the millions of litres of water collected by Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Naya, Eska and others every year. The Canadian Press has learned that the case will be heard on March 1. Revealing this confidential information could reopen the debate on water royalties received by the province, which opposition parties have long considered too low.

Bottled water will no longer be for sale in city of Ottawa vending machines

Bottled water will no longer be for sale in city of Ottawa vending machines

You will not be able to buy bottled water from vending machines in city of Ottawa facilities by the end of June, as the city aims to eliminate the sale of plastic water bottles in facilities. In a report for the Community and Protective Services Committee, staff say the city has worked with Coca Cola to eliminate water bottles from vending machines by the end of the second quarter.

Canadians drink about 2.5 billion litres of bottled water a year

Canadians drink about 2.5 billion litres of bottled water a year

Canadians drink approximately 2.5 billion litres of bottled water a year, so that is a heck of a lot of plastic bottles. While Canadians, and especially here in B.C., are pretty good at recycling theses bottles there is still a huge impact on the environment. For starters, if you factor in making the plastic bottles the water comes in, it takes manufacturers up to three litres of water to product one litre of bottled water. Then you have the energy it takes to produce the bottles from the petroleum raw materials, clean them, label them, fill them, and package them. They then have to be transported to the stores, using more energy. Then they are picked up and transported to your home, and finally disposed of.

What really happens to plastic drink bottles you toss in your recycling bin

What really happens to plastic drink bottles you toss in your recycling bin

The infinite triangular loop of arrows that we know as the recycling symbol adorns millions of plastic pop and water bottles we carefully sort in the blue bin. It comforts us with the idea that each one will be recycled over and over again forever. But unfortunately, most of the time, it's a lie. Many bottles aren't recycled at all, and those that do get recycled usually aren't turned into other bottles or recycled again after that.

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