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.
Residential water and sewer bills must increase each of the next four years to keep pace with rising cost pressures. A staff report going to council’s Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee (SPPC) recommends water rates rise 2.5 per cent next year — and anticipate similar increases each of the following three years.
The city is considering putting in drinking fountains for humans and pooches in parks, according to a report that went to the planning and environment committee Monday. Thirty-six parks could be potentially suitable for the water servicing, the report states. Right now, 24 city parks have water fountains, but none of the five off-leash dog parks do.
He said they do this across the city and surrounding counties three times a year starting in mid-June, and will target nearly 37,000 storm drains each time. "The larvicide looks almost like hamster food. They only use .7 grams of it and it's strictly put in contained catch basins," he said, adding it doesn't pose a risk to public heath.
The temperature has been in the thirties in London this week, which according to CBC's climate dashboard, that's approximately 10 C above average. It follows a very dry May. Hodgins said it's important to recognize that if the leaves coming off your tree are falling in clumps, it's likely the work of thirsty squirrels looking for moisture in the juicy leaves or flushing out their nests. "Clusters of five or six leaves are squirrels. Individuals leaves falling are a symptom of a tree conserving water," Hodgins said. She said vulnerable species of trees right now are silver maples, willows and London plane trees, or Sycamores.
A severe thunderstorm watch has ended for London, Ont. and Middlesex County area, however rain showers and a risk of thunderstorm remains in the forecast for Wednesday evening. A severe thunderstorm watch remained in place as of 4 p.m. for Elgin County, while watches in Huron-Perth, Oxford County, and Sarnia-Lambton had ended. Rainfall warnings remained in place for southern Huron and southern Perth counties, calling for rainfall amounts of between 30 and 50 millimetres.
Raging water is pouring out of the Fanshawe Dam as the flood control structure does its job to protect London. But the controlled release of water from Fanshawe Lake into the Thames River cannot stop shoreline flooding and fast-moving water. That’s especially true after a steady rainfall and expected thunderstorms Wednesday. “Things are moving very quickly and the water is high moving through the city right now,” said Teresa Hollingsworth with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority.
Oneida Nation of the Thames, a First Nation just south of London, Ont., that has been on a boil-water advisory since 2019, has secured $43 million in federal funding to bring treated drinking water to the community. The connection to the Lake Huron Primary Water System will supply potable water to more than 500 homes and public buildings to the community, which is home to nearly 2,200 residents.
"Medium and larger municipalities are starting to realize how important cybersecurity is to protecting the data of citizens, critical infrastructure, political systems, and so on," said Kush Sharma, MISA's director of municipal modernization and partnerships. He says a cyber attack can compromise everything from water and waste distribution systems to transportation technology.
A London conservationist is hoping people hooked on fishing will use his do-it-yourself receptacles to recycle their lines and keep them from harming wildlife. "It's a lot of litter," said Brendon Samuels, a Western University PhD candidate and coordinator of Bird Friendly London. The tube stations Samuels hopes take of will give fishers a way to recycle their fishing lines after use. The units are designed to keep plastic fishing lines out of London's waters, where fish, animals and birds and get tangled. Small parts such as fishing hooks are also a hazard to smaller animals.
Mindorff discussed the benefits of agrivoltaics, which he described as a hybrid agricultural system that maximizes land use and reduces water consumption while providing clean and affordable energy. Among the benefits is the potential to increase crop yields, while reducing water and fertilizer requirements as well as provide growers with additional income generated through selling solar electricity.
Leaders of an Indigenous community near London, Ont., are calling for the federal government to work with them to help solve chronic water supply problems after a state of emergency was issued Tuesday due to low water levels. Residents of Oneida Nation of the Thames are under an order to conserve water and limit its use with the community's water tower at an all-time low. The tower is the primary source of water for the 546 homes and 22 buildings in the territory.
A London, Ont., plumber is warning people not to flush used syringes down toilets or kick them into catch basins, saying that while it seems safer than leaving them in the street, they can present a danger to those who work with the city's plumbing. The opioid crisis has been a simmering problem for at least a decade in the city, with recent figures putting the number of deaths from apparent overdoses at an average of eight a month since the pandemic.
As London enters its third heat warning of the year, the Upper Thames Valley watershed is facing a low water situation due to a lack of rainfall. The lack of rain has prompted a level one low water situation with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority. Between June 15 and July 15, the watershed only received 17mm of rain — a mere 22 per cent of what is considered normal precipitation levels for that time of year.
Organizers of Rock the Park have requested the city provide free water at the weekend music festival after being criticized for only offering water bottles that attendees had to buy. City spokesperson Patti McKague said the request was made Monday and the city has obliged. The four-day music festival takes place July 13 to 17 in Harris Park after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week, CBC News reported that a 72-year-old volunteer quit in disgust after learning that the only source of water would be bottled water sold at $5 apiece.
A 72-year-old volunteer with the "Rock the Park" music festival says she quit in disgust after learning the only source of water at the July concert series in London's Harris Park would be bottled water sold at $5 apiece, a practice she says is akin to gouging people for their basic human rights. The four-day music festival will take place from July 13 to 17 in Harris Park this year. It comes after after a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tickets are $90 and this year's show features big name acts such as Alanis Morrisette, Garbage and the Crash Test Dummies, among others.
As sunshine starts to warm up the city, melting snow is revealing all kinds of litter, including massive amounts of cigarette butts discarded over the winter. For the first time, London's Environmental Network has signed the city up for a Butt Blitz, a national campaign to get as much of the disgusting litter off the street during the month of April. "For the month, we encourage people to pick up cigarette butts and at the end of the month to drop them off at a location and we'll send them off to get recycled," said the networks head, Skylar Franke.
Waste water data has become a valuable asset in determining the level of COVID-19 within a community and in London, it shows an increase. The January surge of Omicron quickly dissipated in February, but COVID cases have seen an increase in the last few weeks based on data from waste water testing data. “You don't want to look at one sample in isolation, you want to look at sort of the trend. And what I've noticed is if I look at the month of February versus the month of March, we're around three times higher,” said Chris DeGroot, an assistant professor at Western University.
A decision to extend the Lake Huron water supply system to a London-area First Nation has earned the full support of water board members. The Lake Huron Water Supply System management board unanimously voted Thursday to endorse a request by Oneida Nation of the Thames to connect to the water supply system, making it the first London-area First Nation to join one of the region’s two water supply systems. “It’s exciting to hear our local First Nation is one of the first in the area to pursue this type of partnership,” said Adrian Chrisjohn, chief of Oneida Nation of the Thames, southwest of London.
City of London bureaucrats unveiled a sweeping climate emergency action plan to the city's media Wednesday that pledges to all but eliminate greenhouse gas emissions in the city by the year 2050. The 30-year plan gives city council recommendations on how the community can bring itself in line with the worldwide effort to reduce green house gas emissions in order to hold global temperatures below two degrees above pre-industrial levels.
Residents in Chippewas of the Thames First Nation near London, Ont., as well as a number of people and businesses in Munsee-Delaware Nation, continue to be under a boil advisory that’s been in effect since last month. The precautionary boil water advisory was first issued on Dec. 14, 2021, and asked residents to conserve their water usage. On Thursday, officials with Chippewas of the Thames announced the advisory is being extended “until further notice” and will impact all of its residents, along with “29 properties and 6 commercial businesses” in Munsee-Delaware.
