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.
Water levels in rivers and lakes of the central and southern Northwest Territories are at — or near — record lows this year after an extremely hot and dry stretch lasting months. "It's been steadily decreasing all summer and, as a result, the Mackenzie River downstream is also extremely low and record low at different locations," said Ryan Connon, a hydrologist with the Government of the Northwest Territories.
