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

John Giesy

COVID-19 viral loads in major Sask. cities' wastewater at highest levels in months

COVID-19 viral loads in major Sask. cities' wastewater at highest levels in months

The COVID-19 viral loads in some of Saskatchewan's major cities are the highest they've been in months, according to the latest weekly report from University of Saskatchewan researchers. Researchers with the university's Global Water Futures program have been analyzing wastewater samples from Saskatoon, North Battleford and Prince Albert for COVID-19 since summer 2020. The study's results can help predict a rise or fall of COVID-19 diagnoses about a week in advance. In an email on Sunday, the team's lead researcher John Giesy said the viral load has "increased significantly" in all three cities, continuing a 10-week trend of upticks.

COVID in the (waste) water: How testing sewage for coronavirus variants can be 'life-saving'

COVID in the (waste) water: How testing sewage for coronavirus variants can be 'life-saving'

John Giesy helps run a level two biosafety lab at the University of Saskatchewan. “Level four would be where you’re working with things like anthrax, and everyone is in hazmat suits,” the toxicologist and environmental chemist explains. At the Saskatoon biolab, people sit before fume hoods, “where we vent things and filter things, so we’re not releasing anything to the environment, and our people aren’t exposed.” One of the things they’re filtering is wastewater, searching for signals of SARS-CoV-2 from human stool.

Saskatoon wastewater study shows huge jump in COVID-19 viral load

Saskatoon wastewater study shows huge jump in COVID-19 viral load

The latest wastewater study from the University of Saskatchewan shows a massive spike in Saskatoon's COVID-19 viral load, signalling the start of a new wave of infections. On Monday, researchers released their latest report, showing a 742 per cent increase in viral load taken from sewage samples in the city. Toxicology professor John Giesy said these latest numbers come after COVID surges in Ontario and Quebec, as well as the UK and China, all driven by the more-infectious BA-2 subvariant of Omicron.

U of S professor believes COVID-19 cases will soon drop in Sask. cities

U of S professor believes COVID-19 cases will soon drop in Sask. cities

University of Saskatchewan toxicologist John Giesy says recent wastewater data shows new COVID-19 cases could be dropping sharply in the next few weeks. According to a study released Monday by the Global Institute for Water Security, samples taken from wastewater plants in Saskatoon, North Battleford and Prince Albert showed a decrease in COVID-19 viral load.

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