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

water pipe

Yellowknife needs to find extra $23M for critical new water pipe

Yellowknife needs to find extra $23M for critical new water pipe

The City of Yellowknife says the cost of a new underwater pipeline to its municipal water source has risen from $34 million to $57 million in the four years since federal funding was received. The city has almost $26 million in federal cash from a disaster mitigation fund to put toward the pipeline from the Yellowknife River to its treatment facility. Initially, that left the city with $8 million to find. But a fresh assessment of the project puts the bill at $23 million more than was first thought in 2019, before the pandemic and various global supply chain issues. Under its agreement with the federal government, the city has to find all of that extra cash – a total of $31 million once you add the cost increase to the initial $8 million.

Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association Welcomes Saint John, New Brunswick, to the Sesquicentennial Club in Recognition of Using Cast Iron Pipe Continuously for 150 Years

Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association Welcomes Saint John, New Brunswick, to the Sesquicentennial Club in Recognition of Using Cast Iron Pipe Continuously for 150 Years

The Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association (DIPRA) welcomes the Canadian city of Saint John, New Brunswick into its Sesquicentennial Club recognizing the city for its continued use of a 150-year-old cast iron water pipe. "Cities that made the commitment to laying iron pipe more than a century ago understand that vital role that such strong, resilient, and durable pipes play in long-lasting infrastructure," said DIPRA President Patrick J. Hogan. "We're excited to welcome the city of Saint John to the Sesquicentennial Club and honor the decisions made by the water and engineering professionals who best understand their community's needs for safe and reliable drinking water."

Former Neskantaga contractor accused of cutting corners in other First Nations

Former Neskantaga contractor accused of cutting corners in other First Nations

“They cut corners every day, every day,” said Justin Gee, vice-president of First Nations Engineering Services Ltd. Gee said he encountered these recurring problems while overseeing the work of a construction firm, Kingdom Construction Limited (KCL), building a water treatment plant 10 years ago in Wasauksing First Nation, along the eastern shore of Georgian Bay, about 250 kilometres north of Toronto. “You have to be on them every step of the way,” said Gee, who was the contract administrator on the project. “You can’t leave them on their own.”

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