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.
With multiple bodies of water under water shortage advisories after a dry start to the month, some fish in Edmonton could be facing a tough winter. Clearwater River, Sturgeon River and the Whitemud and Blackmud creeks currently have water shortage advisories. These are imposed when stream flows or lake or reservoir levels are lower than normal.
A farmer north of Edmonton considers himself lucky to have survived this harvest season. That's no joke about poor weather conditions and long hours in the combine. The evening of Sept. 26, Andy Shwetz in Waskatenau was heavy harrowing (breaking up and spreading straw on a combined field) on a quarter of land that contains a former town water well.
Edmonton's utility company, Epcor, plans to start building a concrete wall and berms around parts of its water treatment plants at Rossdale and E.L. Smith — both in the North Saskatchewan River floodplain — to help protect the region's water supply. Construction on the flood mitigation project is slated to start next year with a budget of $65 million, with about $22 million coming from the federal and provincial governments.
City officials ordered two Downtown public water fountains be disconnected ahead of a heat wave last weekend because of complaints from the police and library staff, shedding light on how Edmonton navigates conflicts around impoverished people’s basic needs and demands by others to tackle social disorder and safety concerns. Epcor cut off the water supply from the fire hydrants at the city’s request last Thursday. The weekend after the bottle filling stations at 96 Street near Bissell Centre West and 100 Street outside Stanley A. Milner Library were removed, temperatures were so hot Environment Canada warned the public to take precautions because of the heat.
Two recently-installed public water stations Downtown have been quietly and suddenly disconnected, a move one advocate called a “heartless” decision by the city amid temperatures so hot it prompted a heat warning in Edmonton this past weekend. The City of Edmonton in May announced plans to install up to 20 temporary bottle-filling stations attached to fire hydrants this summer so the public can have access to safe drinking water and avoid dehydration. There were 17 locations with six in or around Downtown as of mid-June. Postmedia visited the six stations previously announced in the city’s core and found two disconnected by Monday — the station next to Bissell Centre West at 96 Street and 105A Avenue, and outside Stanley A. Milner Library at 100 Street and 102 Avenue. Four other stations in the core were still working.
Flash flooding evacuation orders are in effect for two regions in Woodlands County, Alta., about 180 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, due to rising waters on the Athabasca River which is causing overland flooding. The order is in effect for residents in the Township Road 620A area along the Athabasca River, east of the hamlet of Fort Assiniboine and for the Flats Road area along the river. The orders came into effect Wednesday evening and require all residents to evacuate the area immediately. Rising waters are causing flooding and washing out roads and people have been advised to drive with caution and avoid impacted roads.
Edmontonians are being asked to “exercise extreme caution” as water levels rise on the North Saskatchewan River and its tributaries following continuous rainfall this week. City officials in a Thursday news release warned that the river, shorelines and trails directly near the river may be unsafe due to rising water levels and increased current flow following a rain storm that dumped a large amount of rain on the province over the last 24 hours. The city said flooding may occur in some areas along the North Saskatchewan River and other natural waterways.
Businesses and people living west of Edmonton are being asked to limit water use amid hot, dry weather. The City of St. Albert, Alta., asked residents and business owners to conserve water Monday. The three reservoirs that store water for community use and fire protection are at “near critical” levels, according to the city.
Epcor began adding orthophosphate at its two local water treatment plants last week, two years later than initially planned, the utility confirmed with Postmedia. This treatment will create protective coatings inside pipes to prevent lead from leaching into drinking water, both for Epcor’s pipes and those of private property owners, in hopes of making sure lead concentration in water citywide meets Health Canada’s standards. It’s expected to take up to six months to take full effect.
Ice isn’t generally a welcome sight for vehicles on the road, but a mission to put one on the moon is counting on it. Canada plans to launch its first rover as early as 2026. The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) describes the project as an opportunity to develop technologies for deep-space missions, and find a valuable resource to help make those happen.
Today, the Honourable Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, and the Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Mayor of the City of Edmonton, announced more than $22 million in federal funding to help to reduce flood risk and damage in Edmonton. The project includes improvements that will help mitigate potential flooding hazards at the city's Gold Bar Wastewater Treatment Plant. Three new backwater prevention outfall gates will prevent river water from flowing back into the wastewater treatment plant during storm events, and a flood barrier along the northern edge of the plant will minimize flooding risks.
Volunteers with a local charity were busy handing out water to vulnerable Edmontonians as the city was placed under a heat warning. On Saturday afternoon, Environment and Climate Change Canada placed the capital region under a heat warning as high daytime temperatures and overnight lows were expected throughout the long weekend. Volunteers with a local charity were busy handing out water to vulnerable Edmontonians as the city was placed under a heat warning.
On Saturday afternoon, Environment and Climate Change Canada placed the capital region under a heat warning as high daytime temperatures and overnight lows were expected throughout the long weekend. Heat warnings are issued by Environment Canada when very high temperatures can pose an elevated risk of heat illnesses, like heat stroke or heat exhaustion.
An Alberta regulatory body has turned down an application to expand a feedlot near a popular recreational lake, saying the location wasn't appropriate and would damage the local community. In a decision released Wednesday, the Natural Resources Conservation Board denied a plan from G&S Cattle to build a 4,000-head feedlot near the shores of Pigeon Lake, south of Edmonton. "I find that effects of this application on the community would not be acceptable, and that the proposed [confined feeding operation] would not be an appropriate use of this land," wrote approval officer Nathan Shirley.
Before the liturgy, making the Sign of the Cross towards the four cardinal points — according to indigenous custom — the pope blessed a bowl of the lake’s water, which was brought up to a small wooden structure, shaped like a teepee, overlooking the lake. The pope, after spending a moment in prayer sitting at the water's edge in his wheelchair, later sprinkled the crowds with the blessed water.
Organizers of the Lac Ste. Anne pilgrimage say cleansing stations are to be provided for anyone who wants to enter the lake next week. Alberta Health Services issued a blue-green algae bloom advisory for the lake Thursday afternoon. It comes just days before the Pope is set to visit the lake and kick off the pilgrimage at the site west of Edmonton. Each July, thousands of people go to the shores of Lac Ste. Anne in search of healing and spiritual renewal. But those who come into contact with visible blue-green algae or drink water containing it may get a rash, sore throat, nausea or diarrhea.
A stunning new nature documentary, Wings Over Water, will make its Canadian debut this Friday at the TELUS World of Science - Edmonton. The IMAX® film follows the migratory journeys of three bird species that make remarkable, and often harrowing, flights to the wetlands of North America's prairies to breed and raise their young. Audiences will be captivated by the stories of the sandhill crane, yellow warbler and mallard as they soar across one of the most important—yet little known—ecosystems on the continent.
Utility crews responded to a water main break that caused a sinkhole in the Garneau area Friday evening. EPCOR told CTV News Edmonton that crews were notified of the sinkhole after 6 p.m. at 107 Street and 85 Avenue. Officials shut off the water in the area at 7 p.m. as they started to make repairs, affecting five apartment buildings and one home. In the meantime, EPCOR says a water tank has been made available to residents. The utility provider asks residents and motorists to stay away from the area as crews continue to make repairs and restore water service.
Residential water bills in Edmonton are going up about four per cent and commercial bills are going up by about eight per cent, but the increases would have been higher if not for $66-million discount from EPCOR. In a report to Edmonton councillors on March 25, EPCOR expects the average residential water bill to increase by 3.7 per cent in 2022, 2.1 per cent in 2023 and 4.2 per cent in 2024. That means paying $102 a month in 2021, $106 in 2022, $108 in 2023 and $113 in 2024.
