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.
Beginning this week, water testing undertaken by Southwestern Public Health will help the community stay more informed on the swimming status of beaches in the area. If a beach is found to have high levels of E.coli bacteria in the water, a warning sign will be posted at the beach indicating swimming is not recommended.