Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

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.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

farms

Farmers struggling with waterlogged crops after rainy start to summer

Farmers struggling with waterlogged crops after rainy start to summer

He said this is the wettest start to the summer he's ever seen, which has stopped crews from getting into the fields to pick the produce. The rain is also washing away pesticides that protect tree crops. "Every time we've gone into the orchards to mow or spray or do anything, it's rotted it up or just everything's gotten washed off, so it's definitely been challenging," he said. Spurr said he expects that could create quality issues with their harvest this year. Jordan Eyamie, the manager at Webster Farms, is facing the same problems. Her farm grows strawberries and raspberries. She said her farm has been struggling to protect the strawberries — which are ready to harvest — from something called Botrytis rot brought on by cool and wet conditions. "It's like a grey mould and that can be a season-ender if you can't get it under control," she said.

California to meet 100% of water requests thanks to storms

California to meet 100% of water requests thanks to storms

California will provide 100% of the water requested by cities and farms for the first time in years thanks to winter storms that filled reservoirs and runoff from a record snowpack, regulators announced Thursday. The State Water Project will provide full allocations to 29 water agencies supplying about 27 million customers and 750,000 acres of farmland, the Department of Water Resources said. As late as March, the agency was only expecting to provide 75% of requested water supplies.

An American water crisis

An American water crisis

These are desperate days for the Colorado River. The pulsing lifeblood of the U.S. southwest is increasingly parched. To avert catastrophe, the U.S. government will, within weeks, propose historic cuts in water access. It’s a frantic move to protect a river that provides so much: drinking water for tens of millions of people, electricity and food. Lots of food. This indispensable waterway supplies farms that feed hundreds of millions of people, throughout the continent — including Canadians.

A new beneficial use for drinking water treatment residuals

A new beneficial use for drinking water treatment residuals

Farms in the City of Delta and elsewhere could benefit from residuals from the treatment process that makes our drinking water safe. Metro Vancouver’s Water Committee at its Sept. 7 meeting received an update report on beneficial uses of drinking water treatment residuals, generated by the Seymour Capilano Filtration Plant consisting of sediments, naturally occurring organic matter and treatment chemicals.

Cut water consumption by 20%, GRCA urges

Cut water consumption by 20%, GRCA urges

The Grand River Conservation Authority is urging people and businesses along the watershed to drop their water usage by 20 per cent. This week, the low water response team placed the entire watershed at level two. It means the authority is asking all water users — municipalities, aggregate operations, golf courses, water bottlers, farms for irrigation and private users — to decrease the amount of water they use. The last time a level two was declared for the entire watershed was 2016.

$6M available for P.E.I. farms to help cut carbon

$6M available for P.E.I. farms to help cut carbon

The P.E.I. Federation of Agriculture is now receiving applications for a federal program granting money to farmers for projects that will cut carbon emissions. The federation will be distributing $6 million in federal funding to Island farmers as part of a $182-million national program announced earlier this year. The projects can range from anything from winter cover cropping, to nitrogen management and advanced grazing management.

Helicopters drop drinking water at flooded B.C. farms

Helicopters drop drinking water at flooded B.C. farms

Karl Meier has spent days battling to save his property and dairy cattle from flooding in British Columbia's Fraser Valley, but he says the biggest issue right now is with local law enforcement. "It was bad enough we had to fight the water, but now we've got to fight someone against what we're trying to do," said Meier. Meier owns U & D Meier Dairy in the Sumas Prairie region of Abbotsford, about 100 kilometres east of Vancouver. The area is under an evacuation order because of flooding in the nearby Sumas River. Police-enforced roadblocks have been set up around the area to prevent people from coming or going. Meier said this is making it difficult for people to bring in supplies to the farmers who have chosen to stay to protect their business and their animals.

Irrigation shows early promise for reducing nitrate pollution from farms

Irrigation shows early promise for reducing nitrate pollution from farms

Preliminary research on P.E.I. farms shows that irrigating potatoes helps the plants better use nitrogen in fertilizer, so it doesn't end up leaching into the environment. The research by the Living Lab Project — a partnership of Agriculture Canada, the East Prince Agri-Environment Association and the P.E.I. Department of Agriculture — is in its third year. Provincial soil and water conservation engineer Tobin Stetson said the early field trial results are replicating results from previous federal research farm testing.

P.E.I.'s new Water Act won't protect rivers if province still allows pumping during droughts, group says

P.E.I.'s new Water Act won't protect rivers if province still allows pumping during droughts, group says

The Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Water is concerned the Water Act might not improve things if the province goes against its own rules, as it did approving farmers' use of surface water for irrigation from the Dunk River during a drought last August. "What worries us is when there are demands for water, is the government going to bend and break their own rules?" said coalition chair Catherine O'Brien.

Lack of funding for piped water on First Nations in Sask. means some on reserves can’t drink from their taps

Lack of funding for piped water on First Nations in Sask. means some on reserves can’t drink from their taps

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.

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