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 trio of Conservative MPs called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the federal government to be more responsive to attempts by Swiss-based Glencore to take over Canadian mining giant Teck Resources Ltd. through a shareholder deal. Kootenay-Columbia MP Rob Morrison was joined by Rick Perkins, MP for South Shore—St. Margarets and opposition critic for innovation, science and industry, and Foothills MP John Barlow, along with Elkford mayor Steve Fairbairn.
A running list of specific promises announced by the Liberals, Conservatives, NDP, Greens and People’s party since the official start of the federal election campaign on Aug. 15. Invest $1 billion over 10 years to restore and protect large lakes and river systems. Establish and fully fund a Canada Water Agency. Invest $37.5 million over six years for freshwater research at the International Institute for Sustainable Development’s Experimental Lakes Area. End all drinking water and boil water advisories.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau pledged Monday to spend $1 billion over a decade to protect and restore Canada’s big lakes and river systems, as he again sought to paint a stark contrast between his party’s environmental record and that of the Conservatives. A re-elected Liberal government would also build on its budget commitments by fully funding the creation of a new Canada Water Agency to co-ordinate freshwater initiatives, with a launch set for next year, Trudeau said.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal and provincial governments across Canada are looking for ways to manage any economic hardship. Part of their assorted strategies has been to build new, or repair, existing infrastructure. The federal government now has an opportunity to stimulate the economy, while correcting a heinous historical injustice. It’s time to build the required infrastructure to provide all Indigenous communities in Canada with clean drinking water and reliable sewer systems.
In Canada's largest city, raw sewage flows into Lake Ontario so often, Toronto tells people they should never swim off the city's beaches for least two days after it rains. Across the country in Mission, B.C., a three-decade-old pipe that carries sewage under the Fraser River to a treatment plant in Abbotsford is so loaded operators can't even slip a camera inside it to look for damage. If that pipe bursts, it will dump 11 million litres of putrid water from area homes and businesses into a critical salmon habitat every day it isn't fixed.
No Canadian pays for water – not citizens, farmers or industry. Under NAFTA first – and now the USMCA – if the government starts selling water, it becomes an exportable product, which is widely recognized as a very bad idea. What does cost money is the use of water infrastructure: things such as pipes, testing and labour. Large industrial users are charged more than residents for the privilege, but the amount collected from commercial water bottlers in Ontario has long been criticized as ridiculously low. Until 2017, the administrative fee was just $3.71 for every million litres. The provincial government now charges $503.71 for that amount.
