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.
An environmental conservation group says goldfish, a provincially-designated invasive species, are now thriving in a popular pond in Kelowna, B.C. Lisa Scott, executive director of the Okanagan and Similkameen Invasive Species Society based in Summerland, B.C., says local residents have spotted glints of gold under the ice at Munson Pond, an ecological area, with endangered status, located south of downtown Kelowna.
An Alberta conservation group is raising concerns about the potential for environmental damage from an approved oilsands mining operation on an important wetland in northern Alberta. The Alberta Energy Regulator approved Suncor's plan for work in the McClelland Lake Wetland Complex last year. The project is part of the company's current Fort Hills oilsands operation.
Residents in areas that draw their water supply from the Thames River watershed are still being urged to conserve water where possible. The Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA) continues to warn of low water levels after initially making the declaration on July 18, 2022. It says it's not a crisis but that the time to conserve is now. "For Level 1 and Level 2, it's about awareness, making people aware that we have lower water levels, and encouraging some conservation practices," said Eleanor Heagy, Communications and Marketing Coordinator.
The Columbia River Treaty, an international agreement governing the flow of water between British Columbia and six U.S. states, will be 55 years old this year. It has not aged well. The river springs from the Columbia Icefield in the Rocky Mountains of B.C. and winds 1,930 kilometres through the Northwestern United States – Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Wyoming. No other river in North America spills more water into the Pacific Ocean.
