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.
In portions of Halifax and central Nova Scotia, as an estimated 250 millimetres of rain fell last weekend, similar confusion and improvisation was unfolding, in what some experts say is the latest example of the province's inadequate state of preparation for climate disasters. The mayor of the Municipality of West Hants has said many residents reported they didn't receive any emergency alert at all because of the area's spotty cellular service.
Nova Scotia's Department of Environment is investigating a suspected blue-green algae bloom in Grand Lake, north of Fall River, after two dogs died and one person was sent to hospital Wednesday. The province issued an emergency alert early Thursday morning, warning all residents who take water directly from Grand Lake to stop using the water immediately. "What we do know is there's obviously a toxin," Julie Towers, the department's deputy minister, said Thursday afternoon. "Whether it's human-caused or a natural source is to be determined."
