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.
A water shortage in Nunavut has prompted the region's territorial government to declare a state of emergency, leading experts to re-evaluate water infrastructure in areas they say lack necessary funding. "Families are frustrated. Businesses are frustrated," MP Lori Idlout told CTV News Channel. "Water is such an essential human right." Iqaluit, which reported a water shortage last week, is now working on getting regulatory approval to pump in water from a nearby lake.
Rebecca Zagozewski, executive director with the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association, says cisterns can pose health risks to those who rely on them. She says the structures can have cracked lids, which allows all sorts of debris to get into them — including rats, mice, drowned puppies and garbage — and they’re often not cleaned properly. On top of that, she says the Saskatchewan First Nations Water Association is concerned that there is no certification program for water truck drivers. The group wants to create such a program where drivers would have to be trained in how to keep the water safe and be held accountable if things go wrong. “Because right now there’s no accountability,” she says.
Today, the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Member of Parliament for Moncton–Riverview–Dieppe, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities; the Honourable Ernie Steeves, Minister of Finance and Member of the Legislative Assembly for Moncton–North; and Her Worship Dawn Arnold, Mayor of Moncton, announced funding for improvements to Moncton's potable water system. These upgrades will result in safer drinking water by implementing technology to remove harmful toxins that blue-green algae can produce in potable water systems.
