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.
An independent panel is urging the Yukon government to develop a wetlands policy to protect unique streams, bogs, fens and peatland from mining because there are no known ways to fully restore these sensitive ecosystems once disturbed. Wetlands filter water, provide habitat to species and sequester carbon but are quickly being lost to development worldwide — an issue drawing attention on World Wetlands Day Feb. 2.
Otonabee Conservation is asking people in the Peterborough area to curb their water consumption by 20 per cent because of low water conditions in the Otonabee River watershed. A Level 2 low water condition was declared for the entire area Thursday, following on the heels of a Level 1 low water condition issued Sept. 11 that asked people to voluntarily cut water use by 10 per cent. "Long duration, low intensity rainfall is needed to naturally replenish streams and groundwater supplies. It's up to all of us to do what we can to conserve water, using it wisely as we go about our daily activities," stated Gordon Earle, water resources technologist with Otonabee Conservation.
