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.
Yet, Canada’s important task is to move from a supplier country with restricted access to global energy markets, to an energy and resources powerhouse known worldwide as the market leader in responsibly produced oil, natural gas, uranium, wind, hydropower, lumber, and agriculture. It will take continued hard work but make no mistake; we have most of the pieces already in place. We’re missing the policy framework that will take us from a restricted supplier to a market leader.
A potential new gravel pit in Wilmot — dubbed the "Hallman Pit" — goes before the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) Wednesday. This appeal was initiated last May after the township council denied Jackson Harvest Farms Inc. a rezoning application, halting the project, township documents show. However, in late February the township, the Region of Waterloo and Jackson Harvest Farms Inc. submitted a settlement to the OLT, seeking to resolve the issue. That would allow the gravel pit to proceed, with conditions.
Environmental and human rights impacts of Canadian mining firms operating abroad were the subject of recommendations by a University of Guelph professor to the House of Commons standing committee on international trade this month. A professor in the Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics, and director of the Guelph Institute for Sustainable Commerce, Dr. Rumina Dhalla provided recommendations on Indigenous rights, women in mining, children and supply chains.
A mild winter has meant not very much ice has formed on the Great Lakes and Lake St. Clair. "This year is an extraordinary year," said Steve Salmons, president and CEO of the Windsor Port Authority. Salmons says the lack of ice means ships have easier time of navigating but it doesn't mean a higher volume of goods moves because most ships are taken out of service for winter maintenance and the locks close seasonally anyway.
Lithium in particular, she pointed out, leads to a significant amount of water extraction, and can lead to contamination of water supply, which can also impact ecosystems and the species that depend on them. Canada doesn't currently produce lithium, though it has about 2.5 per cent of the world's known lithium deposits. That's a tiny share compared to countries like Bolivia, Australia, Chile and Argentina, not to mention that China controls most of the world's processing capability.
Members of Norway House Cree Nation raised concerns about information sharing, environmental impacts and community employment at a consultation for a potential nickel mine in the area. Last Thursday, Flying Nickel Mining Corporation and the Government of Manitoba hosted a public consultation around the Minago Nickel Project — a possible development following a memorandum of understanding that was signed by the First Nation's chief and Flying Nickel in February. The mine could be under construction starting in 2024.
A major leak in Whitehorse's sewage system was repaired mid last week, but the extent of the procedure's environmental impacts are still unknown. The Marwell Lift Station, which acts as a conduit for the majority of the city's wastewater and sewage, was recently closed for a week to allow crews to investigate and fix the leaking pipe. During that time, the city opted to temporarily include bypass valves to dump a large volume of raw sewage into the Yukon River.
The City of Thunder Bay is investigating what exactly caused the opening of the Boulevard Lake dam on Sunday night, draining the north-side lake. The lake levels were reported as normal at 10 p.m. Sunday, according to city engineering and operations director Kayla Dixon, who spoke at a media conference held at the lake on Monday afternoon. However, at some point after that, 11 of the dam's 12 gates were opened, mostly draining the lake overnight. The city was notified of the low water levels at about 7 a.m. Monday, but officials don't yet know exactly why the dam was opened.
While Canada and the United States continue to renegotiate an international water sharing agreement, the Regional District of East Kootenay is advocating for consistent water levels on Lake Koocanusa during the summer months. The Columbia River Treaty, a decades-old water sharing and flood management agreement, is currently in the process of being modernized between the two countries, and one of the local sticking points is inconsistent water levels at the Koocanusa reservoir.
