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

PFRA

At last, a federal water agency

At last, a federal water agency

Terry Duguid, Liberal member of Parliament for Winnipeg South, was given the task of turning the notion into reality, a fairly straightforward assignment given the unusual clarity of the promise; at least one would think. Ottawa is spending billions of dollars on water-related programs scattered among more than a dozen departments with co-ordination and common direction lacking for all but a few of these. The guiding policy — federal water policy — was crafted in 1987 and has been a dead letter for at least a couple of decades. An academic study of federal water expenditures conducted in 2020 found it impossible to determine from public records exactly how much Ottawa was spending on water and for what specific purposes.

Water agency must focus on current crises

Water agency must focus on current crises

The Liberal Party of Canada promised during the 2019 federal election to create the Canada Water Agency. During its first 20 months in office, it has repeated the pledge in ministerial mandate letters, in the 2020 speech from the throne, and in the most recent federal budget. This repetition has provided a pretty clear indication of just what the elected government has in mind. The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) is repeatedly cited as, if not a blueprint, at least a model that the new agency should emulate. While co-ordinating the diverse water programs now spread over several government departments, agricultural water issues are seen as a major focus of the CWA, with those issues being linked to climate-change adaptation.

Conservation authority, farmer discuss soil and water health

Conservation authority, farmer discuss soil and water health

Maitland Conservation (MC), formerly Maitland Valley Conservation Authority (MCVA), has been monitoring two agricultural sub-watersheds to address water quality concerns and the effects of farming practices on local water. Ben Van Dieten, Agricultural Stewardship Technician, and Chris Van Esbroeck, Stewardship Services Coordinator of MC, presented their findings to date on these projects, in terms of how and when sediment and nutrients leave the landscape, and the practices they promote to reduce these losses.

Follow us