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.
Last week, Bieber and business partner Micah Cravalho visited Quatar in the midst of the FIFA World Cup festivities, where they introduced their new water technology company, Generosity. An offshoot of their Generosity bottled water brand, reports CNN, the new project aims to offer premium alkaline water in refillable fountains located worldwide. During their visit to the World Cup, the duo showcased 150 fountains in order to provide an example of how Generosity works.
Alkaline water, which is water that has been treated to have a higher pH level than the 6.5-7.5 pH range of most tap and bottled water, is experiencing a surge of popularity. Beyoncé helped kickstart the trend in 2013 when reports surfaced that she included alkaline water on a rider for her Mrs Carter Show world tour. Tom Brady is another celebrity who has professed his love for the stuff. According to data from the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a research and consultancy group, the alkaline water market has grown from being a $47m business in 2014 to a $427m business in 2017. It’s projected to be worth $687m by the end of 2018.
Water always contains some amount of dissolved solids (inorganic salts like calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium, for example), which influences its pH. According to Nicole M. Hancock, executive director of the Safe Drinking Water Foundation, the higher the total dissolved solids, the more alkaline the water tends to be. The pH of tap water is close to 7, while water with more alkaline compounds in it typically has a pH of 8 or 9.
