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.
From green roofs in Toronto to Vancouver’s rain city strategy, Canadian cities are looking to become sponges in order to help mitigate some of the effects of extreme rainfalls. In Montreal, Mayor Valerie Plante announced last week that the city plans to develop some 30 additional sponge parks designed to catch and absorb rainwater and keep it from flowing into overburdened sewers during extreme rain.
