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.
For 57 days David Galvin has had no running water in his Hamilton apartment. He said he hasn't been able to shower there or properly clean his home since the water was shut off Dec. 28. "I'm emotionally and physically debilitated from the stress," Galvin told CBC Hamilton. "I can't sleep. My guts are all out of order." He's lost hope the water will be turned back on anytime soon — for him or the other tenants who have lived there for years, he said.
Manitoba's infrastructure minister overruled the advice of his own department to approve a highway access he was warned could increase collisions. A recent briefing note provided to Doyle Piwniuk stressed that adding a new entrance onto 18th Street in the southwest corner of Brandon — one of the city's busiest roads, also known as Highway 10 — would increase the likelihood of accidents and may degrade a wetland. The proposed access also features turning lanes that would be shorter than standard policy.
A Salmon Arm councillor would like to see a more timely, data-driven response to potential algal blooms in Shuswap Lake. At the July 11 council meeting, Coun. Debbie Cannon raised concerns around the algal bloom advisory issued for parts of Shuswap Lake by Interior Health (IH) on June 28 – and subsequently shared through the media. She was concerned the advisory went out prior to the Canada Day long weekend without testing or verification.
Officials say a diesel spill on a property near Lake Manitoba just over two weeks ago has been contained and there is little risk of the fuel contaminating Sandy Bay First Nation's water source, but a community official says he has concerns about the spill. "We drink from these and we eat from these bodies of water," Randal Roulette, band councillor for Sandy Bay, said on Thursday.
The average Hamilton home will be charged $39.05 more for water next year, but city officials insist the increase is necessary to do infrastructure upgrades, handle climate change, and clean up Hamilton Harbour. City council approved a 4.98 per cent increase to local water bills Wednesday, despite numbers that show people are getting better at conserving water. And Hamilton Water staff predict even steeper increases every year until 2026.
