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.
"They provide a lot of what we call ecosystem services," he said. "So, they provide a lot of benefit to everyday Canadians' lives, even if you don't live or work in the grasslands." They store and filter water, preventing both floods and droughts. They improve water quality. They keep soil in place, because of extensive root networks, so there's less erosion along lakes and rivers.
