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.
Large amounts of "unsightly" and smelly vegetation has been washing up on Toronto's Cherry Beach shoreline recently, but the director of water programs at Swim Drink Fish Canada says there's no need for alarm. Gregary Ford says the mixture of "submerged aquatic vegetation and a form of algae" is harmless to humans and animals. "We get photos like this all the time; people are often concerned when they see something green washing up on their shorelines," Ford told CBC Toronto.
It's that time of year to limit your outdoor water usage. May 31 marks the first day of the conservation water bylaw for our region to conserve the water supply. Dan Meagher is the supervisor for water programs with the Region of Waterloo, and said they have already seen a spike in usage which is why they are promoting the bylaw. "It limits everyone to watering their lawns once a week and other watering activities like cleaning your cars and trees every other day and that is just for us to monitor watering demands and make sure there is enough water for everything that it is needed for." It gets put into effect every year around this time to reduce peak water use and limit the risk of an outdoor watering ban. Meagher says with the pandemic and residents staying home, they have seen an increase in water consumption.
