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

Omicron variant

Wastewater study shows COVID trending down in Saskatoon, increasing in Prince Albert and North Battleford

Wastewater study shows COVID trending down in Saskatoon, increasing in Prince Albert and North Battleford

Analysis of Saskatoon's wastewater reveals the city has likely passed the peak of the pandemic's fifth wave which saw the highly transmissible Omicron variant infect thousands of people each week and push COVID-19 hospitalizations to record-breaking highs across the province. "The concentrations of virus are still greater than they ever were during the fourth wave. After bouncing around a bit, they are trending downward," said John Giesy, a University of Saskatchewan professor and principal investigator for Global Water Futures.

COVID-19 in the wastewater: The sewer may hold key to rising cases and outbreaks, University of Guelph tests reveal

COVID-19 in the wastewater: The sewer may hold key to rising cases and outbreaks, University of Guelph tests reveal

When it comes to understanding where the COVID-19 virus might be turning up in high numbers, the answer could be in the water. Wastewater, to be exact. Testing wastewater, as well as monitoring social media, can give an idea of how prevalent the virus is in specific areas. While many parts of Canada are imposing restrictions on testing for the virus, Lawrence Goodridge, a professor of food microbiology at the University of Guelph, is learning how testing water from sewers and water treatment plants can be a valuable tool in tracing the virus.

Wastewater testing shows COVID-19 may be 'starting to plateau' in Kitchener and Cambridge

Wastewater testing shows COVID-19 may be 'starting to plateau' in Kitchener and Cambridge

Wastewater testing in the Region of Waterloo shows the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has pushed infection levels to more than 10 times higher than ever before but there are early indications that infections may be starting to level off. Thursday's data published by the Region of Waterloo contains the first sign of hope for a slowing down of infection during the latest wave of the pandemic.

There's something in the water: Edmonton's COVID-19 sewage is vast

There's something in the water: Edmonton's COVID-19 sewage is vast

The level of COVID-19 indicators in Edmonton wastewater has soared well above where it was in any other wave of the pandemic but experts say it’s too soon to predict whether this wave has peaked and how bad the increased pressure from the Omicron variant could get on the province’s health-care system. According to data collected by researchers from the University of Alberta and University of Calgary, the level of COVID-19 viral RNA in wastewater at the Edmonton testing site jumped to 595.7 copies per 100 ml by Jan. 3 from 153.9 copies per 100 ml on Dec. 28. The most recent number from Jan. 12 sits at 525.7.

'It was stunning': Wastewater data shows high levels of Omicron variant in Waterloo Region

'It was stunning': Wastewater data shows high levels of Omicron variant in Waterloo Region

Researchers studying the presence of the virus causing COVID-19 in local wastewater say the amount of Omicron variant detected in the water has increased rapidly over the past few weeks. Mark Servos, the Canada Research Chair in Water Quality Protection, said Omicron spread appeared in wastewater far faster than any other variant to date. "It just went up so dramatically, so quickly," he said at Waterloo Region's weekly COVID-19 update on Friday. "It was stunning."

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon show massive increase in the Omicron variant

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon show massive increase in the Omicron variant

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon are seeing a major increase in the Omicron variant since it was detected for the first time in the city last Tuesday. The latest samples tested by the Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) at the University of Saskatchewan show Omicron constitutes 64.1 per cent the overall COVID-19 viral load in the Saskatoon sample. It is an increase of 808.2 per cent since the variant was first detected in Saskatoon wastewater on Dec. 21. The viral load in Saskatoon's wastewater has increased by 87.7 per cent since then.

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