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.
federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans
The ocean shelf off Labrador has hit record high temperatures this summer, according to the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. St. John's-based DFO research scientist Frederic Cyr told CBC News the summer of 2023 has been "pretty incredible" for the world ocean. "The entire North Atlantic reached record high temperatures," said Cyr — although it's still generally colder than the rest of the ocean, he added.
Ocean temperatures in Atlantic Canada set record highs again in 2022, according to the latest assessment released by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Results from the annual Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program show surface, intermediate and bottom temperatures were well above normal last year. "It was widespread. It was everywhere," said Peter Galbraith, a DFO research scientist in Mont-Joli, Que. "It was really, really warm across the zone."
“Through the Canada Water Agency, our government is looking to strengthen collaboration between the federal government, the provinces, territories, Indigenous peoples and other partners to find the best ways to safeguard our freshwater consultations are an important part of this process and I look forward to input from Canadians,” Terry Duguid said in a statement. Mr. Duguid is Parliamentary Secretary to Minister Wilkinson and has been key in the development process. The discussion paper, ‘Toward the Creation of a Canada Water Agency,’ presents key issues and provides an overview of the federal government’s existing activities to enhance freshwater management, and a virtual national freshwater policy forum is planned for January 27 and 28. A series of regional forums will be held in February that will provide additional opportunities to participate in consultations. The discussion paper and additional information can be found at placespeak.ca. Comments can be submitted until March 1.
