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.
Taralee Beardy never thought she would see her community get a safer source of water, but a national $8 billion drinking water class-action settlement affecting First Nations is set to change that. Beardy, the chief of Tataskweyak Cree Nation in northern Manitoba, says the construction of a new 40-kilometre pipeline and water treatment plant for her community is set to begin next spring, meaning Tataskweyak's six-year boil water advisory will be coming to an end.
A water quality advisory is being issued for the Wilderness Mountain area due to elevated concentrations of manganese. This water quality advisory is in addition to the existing boil water advisory for the Wilderness Mountain water service area. According to the Capital Regional District (CRD), manganese is a naturally occurring element that is present throughout the environment and can normally be found in many surface and groundwater sources.
Thousands of residents of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., who have been without running water since Monday after a major water-main break, were beginning to get it back on Friday morning. The city warned residents to boil the water for one minute before consuming it and to delay running appliances that use lots of water to avoid overloading the newly repaired pipe.
The N.W.T.'s chief public health officer has issued a precautionary boil water advisory for the community of Délı̨nę. The measure is being taken because water in the community has more mud in it than usual, the Department of Health and Social Services said in the notice Friday afternoon. Residents are being urged to boil water used for drinking, preparing food, and dental hygiene for at least one minute. The department said boiling water is especially important while preparing infant formulas.
People in Sanirajak, Nunavut, are asked to keep their water at a rolling boil for at least one minute before using it. That's because total coliform bacteria has been found in the water system, and people could get sick from drinking tap water, according to the territory's Department of Health. People should boil any water used for drinking; preparing infant formulas, ice, juice, or meals; brushing teeth; and washing fruit and vegetables.
Even though Wheatley, Ont., residents are relieved that a three-week boil water advisory has now been lifted, some like Terry Lobzun say the whole ordeal adds to the mistrust and uncertainty they feel about the future of their community. As of Wednesday evening, the municipality of Chatham-Kent and its public health unit rescinded a boil water advisory for Tilbury and Wheatley. The alert was in place for about 8,500 residents in both communities after a fire broke out at the Wheatley Water Treatment Plant on Sept. 13.
Chatham-Kent Public Health has lifted a boil water advisory that has been in effect for weeks following a fire at the Wheatley water treatment plant. CK Public Health lifted the advisory issued Sept. 13 on Wednesday after the organization said it received “satisfactory test results” from water samples taken on Monday and Tuesday.
Clean water for all has been discussed for many years as a basic human right. Unfortunately many indigenous communities in Canada are put on a boil water advisory every year due to unclean water conditions. According to the government of Canada website, there are currently 28 Indigenous communities that are on long-term boil advisories throughout the country.
A boil water advisory has been issued for those on the Chatham-Kent Municipal Water Distribution Systems for Wheatley and Tilbury following a fire at a water treatment plant on Wednesday. "It has been found that the site has undergone significant damage and as a result the Wheatley Water Treatment Plant is not operational at this time," the municipality said in a media release Wednesday night.
A trailer park resident in northeast B.C. says her landlord and the regional health authority have failed to address high levels of manganese in the water supply for more than three years — and the problem still hasn't been fixed. Cassandra Ross says she didn't even learn of the issues with the drinking water at Shady Acres Mobile Home Park until a boil water advisory was put in place for high bacteria levels more than two years after the manganese issue was found.
This is a reminder to Rural Water Districts 8 & 9 that a boil water advisory exists for the properties highlighted below. If you received a letter from the Town of Osoyoos in April 2023, it is still in effect. Any changes to this status will be communicated by letter to users when it is lifted. The agricultural irrigation district receives its water supply directly from the lake with limited treatment during this time. This advisory is to mitigate the risk of potential bacteria. Any questions can be directed to Operational Services at (250) 495.6213.
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.
The boil water advisory for Hillsburgh was lifted on Saturday. The Ministry of Health issued the notice Wednesday, warning residents and businesses to stop using the drinking water system immediately. According to Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, three water samples were collected on July 12 and July 13. They were tested for total coliform and E. coli bacteria. The health inspector now says “the test results indicate the water is bacteriologically safe to drink.” As such, the boil water advisory was removed.
A lack of communication between a private water testing firm for Wellington on the Lake and Prince Edward County has caused confusion for residents of a Wellington housing development. Thursday afternoon the county issued a warning that someone was going door to door telling people in the Wellington on the Lake housing development that a boil water advisory was in effect and the county issued a press release saying the advisory was a scam. However, Thursday evening before 9 o’clock, the county issued another release saying that a boil water advisory was in fact in effect. Wellington on the Lake is a separate drinking water system that receives water from the Wellington Drinking Water System.
With the reservoir low, residents in Alma, N.B., are being asked to conserve water. This comes just days after the Municipality of Fundy Albert advised residents to boil their water. Fundy Albert Mayor Robert Rochon said the issue isn't a lack of water as much as an aging system that can only fill the reservoir so fast. He said the reservoir is fed by a well that can pump 50 gallons of water per minute, but the demand on the system exceeds that.
A boil water advisory has been issued for the village of Alma, about 79 kilometres south of Moncton, because of high levels of turbidity in the reservoir. "These levels exceed the New Brunswick maximum acceptable concentrations," a notice issued by the local government on Wednesday morning says. Recent heavy rainfall caused the problem, according to chief administrative officer Hanna Downey — a drastic change from last weekend when the village almost ran out of water and had to urge residents to conserve as much as possible.
A new copper plaque on the boulevard along Broadway at Donald Street aims to educate Winnipeggers about the source of their drinking water and the community surrounding it — Shoal Lake 40 First Nation. "For years Winnipeg members, their citizens, were able to … turn on their tap," said Chief Kevin Redsky of Shoal Lake 40 First Nation at the unveiling of the plaque on Friday. The plaque pays tribute to Shoal Lake as the source of city water since 1919, when the Winnipeg aqueduct was completed. It explains how the project impacted the First Nation community and its relationship with water. "The 24-year boil water advisory, the sickness created bathing our own children, not being able to drink safe water," Redsky said.
The District of Invermere has issued a second water quality advisory in the space of less than a week. Once again, a broken water main is to blame. The new advisory was issued late yesterday (Tuesday, June 6) and applies to Upper and Lower Lakeview Lane. All residents on those streets should boil water for at least one full minute if they plan to use it for drinking, making ice, cooking, washing food or brushing their teeth.
Alberta Health Services has ordered Calgary to issue a boil water advisory for three communities, effective immediately. The advisory applies to Silverado, Yorkville and Belmont until further notice. A watermain break Thursday afternoon disrupted water supply to a large portion of those communities at the far southwest corner of the city, and while water has been restored to most homes, the city says the advisory has been issued out of an abundance of caution.
