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.
The bill Nestlé is backing this year, SB 1660, would create a whole new category of water, along with allowing industrial plants to bypass licensed water providers and treat water on-site for underground storage. "Effluent" -- or used -- water was already classified by Arizona as treated sewer water. However, this bill would create another type of effluent water specifically for manufacturers.
