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.
Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation
The need for water quality along Georgian Bay is no mere drop in the bucket. Members of the Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation (GBGLF) addressed Tiny Township council at the recent committee of the whole meeting, presenting an update on Georgian Bay water levels and water quality, and asking the township for a letter of support for funding from the federal government.
A study on water levels projects an unprecedented drop of water levels on Lakes Michigan-Huron and Georgian Bay to 1.1 metres (3.5 feet) below the record low by 2030. By 2040, levels may rise to 0.3 metres (one foot) higher than the 1986 record high. The study by W.F. Baird & Associates Coastal Engineers Ltd. was commissioned by the Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation (GBGLF) and was shared virtually by GBGLF on May 16/17. The Baird conclusions are essentially the same as those found in a recently completed five-year study by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), presented during a week-long Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands webinar series from April 4 to 8.
