Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

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.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

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Killer Water: The Toxic Legacy of Canada's Oil Sands Industry for Indigenous Communities

Killer Water: The Toxic Legacy of Canada's Oil Sands Industry for Indigenous Communities

n Northern Alberta, Canada, sit the Athabasca tar sands—the world’s largest known reservoir of crude bitumen, and a major driver of Canada’s economy. The vast majority of Canadian oil production comes from the extraction and processing of the crude bitumen found in the tar sands. But while Canada prospers off the tar sands industry, Indigenous communities downstream are in the grips of its toxic impact. It is well documented that the people of Fort Chipewyan, in northern Alberta, have been struck by disproportionately high rates of cancer, and their proximity to the tar sands has long been the suspected dominant factor contributing to their sickness.

Teen dead after being swept into storm tunnel during heavy rain: Toronto fire

Teen dead after being swept into storm tunnel during heavy rain: Toronto fire

A teenager was found dead Friday after he reportedly got caught in a storm drain tunnel in a Toronto park during heavy rain overnight, fire crews say. Toronto fire officials say they received a call around 1:20 a.m. reporting a person being swept into the water at Earl Bales Park, the site of a large stormwater management pond in North York. They say an 18-year-old who was with the boy at the time of the incident was able to get out of the water safely and was treated at the scene.

Glencore moves to take full control of PolyMet, developer of Minnesota copper-nickel mine

Glencore moves to take full control of PolyMet, developer of Minnesota copper-nickel mine

The Corps said the permit did not comply with the water quality standards set by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, whose reservation on the St. Louis River is downstream from the mine and processing plant sites near Babbitt and Hoyt Lakes. The project has long been criticized by environmental and tribal groups for its potential impacts on water resources, but it has also come under increasing fire in recent months from former Gov. Arne Carlson, a Republican who served from 1991-99. In addition to the risks to water quality, Carlson has sounded the alarm about the influence of big mining corporations on Minnesota politics.

Freight train carrying hot asphalt, molten sulfur plunges into Yellowstone River as bridge fails

Freight train carrying hot asphalt, molten sulfur plunges into Yellowstone River as bridge fails

The train cars were carrying hot asphalt and molten sulfur, Stillwater County Disaster and Emergency Services said. Officials shut down drinking water intakes downstream while they evaluated the danger after the 6 a.m. accident. An Associated Press reporter witnessed a yellow substance coming out of some of the tank cars. David Stamey, the county's chief of emergency services, said there was no immediate danger for the crews working at the site, and the hazardous material was being diluted by the swollen river. There were three asphalt cars and four sulfur cars in the river.

Why California's storm is unlikely to reverse its drought

Why California's storm is unlikely to reverse its drought

California - one of the driest states in the US - is being inundated with torrential rain and flooding. And given the decades-long drought in the region, which has led to restrictions on water usage in some areas, you might be wondering if this extreme weather could in some ways be a positive. But the downpour is unlikely to have a big impact on the drought. In fact, experts say it would take consecutive years of severe wet weather to reverse it in the long-term.

Tribes Say BC Mine Waste Threatens Water, Way of Life

Tribes Say BC Mine Waste Threatens Water, Way of Life

Tribal representatives from across the Northwest are flying into Washington, D.C. this week to discuss how mine waste in British Columbia is threatening their way of life. With plans in the Canadian province for doubling the number of mines, tribes say waste already affects waterways downstream in the U.S. Richard Janssen Jr. is the Department Head of Natural Resources for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, and is in D.C. this week. He said selenium waste from mines near the Elk River north of Montana has a detrimental effect on waterways.

Drained: Sask. rancher’s land ‘dying’ without water from reservoir

Drained: Sask. rancher’s land ‘dying’ without water from reservoir

On his ranch, Doug Wilson walks past an old abandoned three-storey home and stands at the bank of what had once been the flowing Maple Creek. The creek is dry again this year as brittle, dead tree debris litters the edges. Grass is growing where, at one time, water would have normally passed by. “Over the last 20 years we’ve seen a huge amount of tree loss,” Wilson said earlier this summer near the southwest Saskatchewan town. “It’s dying. The whole area is dying.” Wilson relies on the water to feed his cattle. It represents his livelihood and helps him survive. But over the last few years, he’s had to reduce his herd size from 600 cattle to 400. He’s also had to pay for someone else’s feed because he’s been short on water.

Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron water levels are near their seasonal low point

Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron water levels are near their seasonal low point

Lake Superior and Lake Michigan-Huron water levels are near their seasonal low point and depending on weather and water supply conditions could begin their seasonal spring rise over the coming weeks. Lake Superior water levels remain below the seasonal long-term average while Lake Michigan-Huron water levels remain above the seasonal long-term average. Lake Superior outflows continue to be set in consideration of water levels upstream and downstream.

Some Northern residents vow to oppose federal plan to release treated oilsands tailings

Some Northern residents vow to oppose federal plan to release treated oilsands tailings

Northerners say the federal government's plan to regulate the release of treated oilsands tailings water will be met with opposition by communities downstream. As the N.W.T. Environment minister gears up for a diplomatic approach with Alberta and Canada, Dene leaders like Smith's Landing First Nation Chief Gerry Cheezie are prepared to take legal action with Dene Nation, and to bring their opposition to the release of tailings all the way to Ottawa.

Decreasing water levels in Lake of the Woods and Lac Seul

Decreasing water levels in Lake of the Woods and Lac Seul

Lake of the Woods and Lac Seul have been hit hard this year with decreasing water levels. The current level of the Lake of the Woods is 322.75 m (1058.9 ft), which is equal to a 30th percentile (per cent of distribution that is equal to or below it) which is considered normal for this time of the year. This past week the lake water level has fallen by 1cm (½ in), and is still expected to drop further by 1 to 3 cm ( 1 in) over the next week.

'An abomination': Sask. water expert warns of contamination following Alberta's coal policy changes

'An abomination': Sask. water expert warns of contamination following Alberta's coal policy changes

Alberta's plan to allow for open-pit coal mining in the Rocky Mountains could be a serious threat to Saskatchewan's water supply, says the director of the Global Water Futures Project at the University of Saskatchewan. "For a water scientist to see this happening, it's just an abomination to have these types of developments suggested in the headwaters of the rivers that supply drinking water and the economy for most of Saskatchewan," John Pomeroy told CBC's Blue Sky. Last spring, the Alberta government revoked a 1976 policy that blocked open-pit coal mining on the eastern slopes and peaks of the Rockies.

Alberta promises close watch on new mines but cuts oversight of coal-polluted rivers

Alberta promises close watch on new mines but cuts oversight of coal-polluted rivers

Alberta government documents show repeated cuts to environmental monitoring despite contaminants in some waterways that exceed thresholds that are supposed to trigger increased scrutiny. The province's 2019 five-year monitoring plan shows stations on two rivers and a creek polluted with selenium from coal mines were mothballed. That was despite more than two decades of readings that Alberta Environment guidelines suggest should have led to closer attention.

Contaminant from coal mines already high in some Alberta rivers: unreported data

Contaminant from coal mines already high in some Alberta rivers: unreported data

The province's plan for large-scale expansion of the industry is fueling widespread criticism that includes concerns over selenium pollution. The data shows that same contaminant has been found for years at high levels downstream of three mines and never publicly reported. The findings raise questions about Alberta Environment, said a former senior official who has seen the data. "There were lots of [selenium] numbers and it was consistently above the water quality guidelines and in many cases way higher," said Bill Donahue, the department's one-time executive director of science. "Why did Alberta Environment sit on these data for easily the last 10 to 15 years?"

Alberta government wants to rewrite the water use rules along eastern slopes of Rockies

Alberta government wants to rewrite the water use rules along eastern slopes of Rockies

The Alberta government wants to rewrite the rules on water use along the eastern slopes of the Rockies as part of its economic recovery plan, including a push for new coal developments in the area. Water use is highly restricted in southern Alberta due to concerns about supply, and new water licences cannot be issued, they have to be purchased from existing licence holders on the open market. The new plan put forward by the Alberta government would affect water pulled from the Oldman watershed above the dam.

Health Canada knew about contaminated water for 2 years before Mississippi Mills residents informed

Health Canada knew about contaminated water for 2 years before Mississippi Mills residents informed

Many government agencies knew about the suspicious well water in Ramsay Meadows, a small subdivision halfway between Almonte and Carleton Place. But none of those agencies told the residents. The 49 homes stand across the street from the National Research Council’s national fire lab, which does research on firefighting. In late 2013, the lab bosses learned that their firefighting chemicals had contaminated their property’s groundwater, probably in the late 1900s.

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