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.
Businesses and people living west of Edmonton are being asked to limit water use amid hot, dry weather. The City of St. Albert, Alta., asked residents and business owners to conserve water Monday. The three reservoirs that store water for community use and fire protection are at “near critical” levels, according to the city.
Last year's hot, dry summer, an increased interest in home gardening, and a rising awareness of the effects of climate change have people turning to rain barrels. Macx MacNichol, owner of ECO-Containers in Dorchester, converts food-grade plastic containers into rainwater-harvesting systems ranging in size from 205 litres to 1,000 litres and priced from $45 to $205. He buys the used containers from different industries in and around Moncton. MacNichol said they've been harder to come by since the pandemic started because some of his suppliers have closed, and others aren't as busy. Coupling that with an increase in demand for his product means, "every barrel that comes in today, is spoken for tonight," said MacNichol. He said last year's dry summer got people's attention.
Rain is a resource society can use and should: this is what Atlantic Coastal Action Program Cape Breton hopes to convey with its graphic design contest for ACAP’s summer rain barrel giveaway. “Stormwater issues are increasing with climate change because we're having more frequent storms and heavier rainfalls,” said ACAP Cape Breton project manager Jen Cooper. Much of the infrastructure in use today wasn’t built for the world we’re living in, with its heavier rain and snowstorms and more severe extreme weather events. This is resulting in more frequent minor to moderate flooding events in Cape Breton.
Despite the increase in flooding and the resulting damage to properties, homes and livelihoods, many Canadians are still unprepared and don’t know how to mitigate flood risk. A recent survey commissioned by RSA Canada and WWF-Canada found that 37% of Canadians don’t know how to protect their homes from flooding. The biggest awareness gap was among 18-34-year-olds at 54%, compared to 40% of 35-54-year-olds and 23% of those aged 55+.
