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.
A boil-water notice has been issued for the entire city of Prince Rupert, B.C., after its aging water system suffered multiple breaks on Tuesday night. Mayor Herb Pond described the situation in the city of 12,000 people as "armageddon-like," with water gushing out of the ground, washing out streets and flooding people's basements.
Authorities have issued a boil water advisory in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, as of late July 20 due to construction on the city's water main. Authorities are warning the public to boil drinking water before consumption. The water boil advisory is scheduled to last until July 23, but extensions to the constructions schedule and lingering water supply issues are possible. Business disruptions are likely, especially for companies that rely on large quantities of water.
Giving a breakdown of costs, Bomben explained $5 million is for engineering and design, $130M is for water works and the remaining $70M is for “similar vintage and condition sewer lines.” “These must be replaced at the same time as the water mains since the failure of the sewer lines could also impact adjacent infrastructure and potentially cause the water system to fail. It would be far more costly and disruptive to the community to excavate the same road system twice to replace these systems at different times.”
The Province is providing $65 million to the City of Prince Rupert to replace crucial sections of its aging water-distribution system to ensure reliable water service for the community. “The importance of reliable drinking-water delivery cannot be overstated. We saw first-hand the critical need for this funding last December when the city issued a state of emergency due to water-distribution concerns,” said Premier David Eby. “Crews worked tirelessly to keep potable water flowing to homes during the holiday season, and I want to thank them for their efforts. Together we are working to support the people of Prince Rupert, replacing aging infrastructure and ensuring that this valuable resource is available now and in the future.”
For the first time in seven years, residents in Prince Rupert will be able to drink water once again from Woodworth Lake, the City of Prince Rupert announced on Feb. 8. With the completion of the new Woodworth Dam in October 2022, water levels have now risen enough to return the supply to the primary source instead of Shawatlans Lake from where it has been pumped since 2016.
The province supports the need for dire infrastructure repairs in Prince Rupert and called on the federal government to help pay for the replacement of the city’s aging water infrastructure in a letter dated Jan. 9. The letter detailed the critical need for infrastructure repairs after the recent state of emergency declared in Prince Rupert and main breaks more than doubling in 2022 over 2021. The correspondence further explained since Dec. 16, the city had experienced five water main breaks and 21 service breaks throughout the municipality due to aged pipes.
A recent state of local emergency brought home the global implications of port growth and international trade from Prince Rupert and the severity was outlined in a Dec. 22 letter to the federal government by Jennifer Rice, North Coast MLA. “The city has demonstrated that immediate investment in the water distribution infrastructure is required as a failure would likely require the community to evacuate and completely shut down port operations,” the letter stated. “A failure of this magnitude would jeopardize all of the federal investment, the federal reputation for the Canadian port industry and national revenues.”
Prince Rupert declared a local state of emergency Saturday, as city officials said in a new release that there were three breaks in local water mains and multiple service interruptions that started early that morning. Herb Pond, the city's mayor, says six of the city's major water pipes have burst in the past week. "We have a very old water system," he said in an interview. "Much of the pipes are well over 100 years old." Pond says the ground in the area is mostly rock and muskeg with very little soil,causing the pipes to shift and be more susceptible to damage, especially as they get older.
The boil water notice in effect that was posted Sept. 20 has been downgraded to a boil water advisory, the City of Prince Rupert announced on Oct. 18. According to the Water Quality and Health Council, a boil water advisory is a public statement issued by a utility no later than 24 hours after learning of a microbial water quality violation, such as excess levels of indicator organisms. “It is important to emphasize that an advisory does not necessarily mean that the tap water is contaminated. Rather, it means that the water could be contaminated, and that the public should take precautionary measures, especially the elderly, very young, or those with a weak immune system. In contrast, a boil water notice is issued when contamination in a water system is confirmed. Advisories and notices remain in effect until publicly lifted by the utility (typically for at least 24 hours), and following water quality test results that demonstrate the tap water is safe to drink or use,” the organization said on its website.
Vancouverites like to pride themselves on their ability to thrive under a constant cloud cover, but they’re not the wettest place in Canada by a long shot. According to a new report, Canada’s rainiest city gets 50 more rainy days on average than even Seattle. Budget Direct’s new World Rain Index report collected climate data to gather the number of rainy days – with at least one millimetre or precipitation – for 64,429 global cities. They found that the rainiest city in Canada is actually Prince Rupert. It has an average of 166 rainy days per year.
A Prince Rupert business is refusing to pay taxes until the city’s tap water is “safe”, and placed a sign in the front window publically stating the declaration on Sept. 28. At Hasami Hair Studio, some customers have said they do not want their hair washed because of the boil water advisory the municipality issued on Sept. 21, Jason Eleuterio, co-owner of the hair studio, told The Northern View. “If you notice, it’s kind of ‘slicky’, like greasy to touch,” Eleuterio said.
A group of federal Liberal MPs are asking their government to invest up to $400 million to combat the “health crisis” of lead-contaminated drinking water which was exposed in communities across the country by a national investigation by 10 media outlets, including Global News and the Toronto Star. An open letter written by Hamilton MP Bob Bratina says the government “can and must” direct a portion of infrastructure spending designed to revitalize the post-COVID-19 economy into the “national public health crisis we face in the form of lead-contaminated drinking water.”
Leona Peterson doesn’t drink the water from her tap anymore. The single mother says she was warned about lead in the water by a neighbour as soon as she moved into the subsidized Indigenous housing complex where she lives in Prince Rupert, a city of almost 12,000 people in northwestern B.C. “She said, ‘There is lead in our water,’” Peterson said. “‘Don’t doubt it, just start flushing.’”
