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

climate change

Graphic Truth: When it comes to freshwater, Canada is king

Graphic Truth: When it comes to freshwater, Canada is king

Water covers 71% of the Earth’s surface, but good ol’ H2O is a much more precious resource than it appears. Less than 0.8% of Earth’s water is freshwater in lakes, rivers, or underground aquifers. And much of that already tiny fraction has been rendered unusable by pollution or is lost to poor management and inefficient agricultural practices. What’s worse, climate change and overexploitation of existing water resources mean that communities from California to Cambodia are struggling to provide safe water at an affordable price.

UCalgary awarded 2 prestigious Canada Excellence Research Chairs

UCalgary awarded 2 prestigious Canada Excellence Research Chairs

Deborah McGregor is an internationally celebrated scholar and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Environmental Justice. She joins UCalgary from York University, where she was cross-appointed to the Osgoode Hall Law School and the Faculty of Environment and Urban Change. As the CERC in Indigenous Ways of Climate and Water Sustainability for Planetary Health and Well-being, McGregor will generate understanding of, and build support for, Indigenous leadership in Earth-based reconciliation and justice, focusing on climate change as the overriding symptom of the planetary health crisis.

Geese not goosing away? It’s not the warmth, it’s the water, expert says

Geese not goosing away? It’s not the warmth, it’s the water, expert says

Whether you call them cobra chickens or Canadian geese, one thing’s for sure — they’re still here. Well, at least the lot that haven’t taken off after the snowstorms Manitoba has had. Barret Miller, program manager for Winnipeg’s FortWhyte Alive wildlife preserve, said some geese don’t leave Manitoba until they absolutely have to.

Metro Vancouver residents slapped with $166K in fines for defying water restrictions

Metro Vancouver residents slapped with $166K in fines for defying water restrictions

About $166,000 in fines were issued to Metro Vancouver residents who did not abide by restrictions put in place this summer to try to conserve water. Of the 21 municipalities, one electoral area and one Treaty First Nation that make up Metro Vancouver, more than half issued fines ranging from $100 to $500 to residents who flouted water-restriction rules put in place Aug 4.

A tsunami in Jasper? How falling ice nearly caused a 'mass casualty' event

A tsunami in Jasper? How falling ice nearly caused a 'mass casualty' event

A federally funded research project is underway to find out if B.C. and Alberta are at risk of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) due to climate change. The Weather Network's Connor O'Donavon has more on why GLOF represents a major hazard and how it can result in significant loss of life. Picture a wall of water suddenly rushing down a mountain valley towards you, giving you just seconds to react. That’s just what happened in 2012 at Mount Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park when the hanging Ghost Glacier fell into the glacial lake below. 

How one Canadian firm is using the power of the ocean to desalinate the ocean

How one Canadian firm is using the power of the ocean to desalinate the ocean

But in a groundbreaking mission to mitigate the global water crisis without further contributing to carbon emissions, a Canadian company, Oneka Technologies, is pioneering an innovative approach to desalination. The Quebec-based startup has developed an avant-garde solution that harnesses the boundless energy of the ocean waves to convert saltwater into fresh, drinkable water. Oneka Technologies’ floating desalination units, anchored securely to the ocean floor, utilize a membrane-based system, known as reverse osmosis, to purify seawater. The process is elegantly simple: wave energy is converted into mechanical energy, powering pumps that draw in seawater and push a portion through a semipermeable membrane to filter out the salt. The result is clean, potable water delivered to shore through pipelines, propelled by the very force that generated it: the undulating waves of the sea. “Oneka's technology is 100% mechanically driven," Hunt told the BBC, underscoring the zero-electricity operation of their machines. Such innovation represents a seismic shift towards sustainability in desalination practices. 

Isolated and expensive, the N.W.T.'s Sahtu riding feels squeeze of climate change

Isolated and expensive, the N.W.T.'s Sahtu riding feels squeeze of climate change

While the southern N.W.T. was battered by wildfires this summer, the territory's remote Sahtu region faced its own climate challenge: a historically-low Mackenzie River. For the first time in living memory, low water caused by extremely dry conditions prevented most of the season's supply barges — hauling everything from drywall to gummy bears — from navigating the Mackenzie. The river is a lifeline for the five communities that make up the N.W.T.'s Sahtu riding: Deline, Fort Good Hope, Tulita, Colville Lake, and Norman Wells, the regional hub of roughly 800 people. And the high cost of living is the number one issue heading into the Nov. 14 territorial election. 

'Sponge cities': An absorbing idea in the face of climate change

'Sponge cities': An absorbing idea in the face of climate change

At the bottom of a slope in a dense Montreal neighbourhood, there's a new park with benches, an open field and a playground — along with two small pedestrian bridges. When there's heavy rain, water rushes down the streets and sidewalks into the green space, forming a small lake beneath the overpasses, in a carved-out area filled with grasses, shrubs and rocks. In the days that follow, the water slowly seeps into the soil and stormwater system. It's all been engineered to prevent flash flooding in nearby streets and homes, while nourishing the vegetation in the park.

A coastal First Nation’s Guardians are ‘testing the water’ to prepare for climate change

A coastal First Nation’s Guardians are ‘testing the water’ to prepare for climate change

A coastal First Nation’s Guardian team is gearing up to test the waters to try to limit the impacts of drought in their traditional territories on northeast Vancouver Island. The We Wai Kai First Nation's environmental stewards are partnering with other local groups to map and monitor wetlands, watersheds and streams on Quadra Island as summers get hotter and drier, said Guardian program manager Shane Pollard. Drought in the northeastern Vancouver Island water basin, which includes We Wai Kai territory and Quadra Island, is increasingly common.

Massive tent celebrating Canada’s land, water ‘guardians’ raised on Parliament Hill

Massive tent celebrating Canada’s land, water ‘guardians’ raised on Parliament Hill

An Indigenous group has raised a large traditional tent on the lawn of Parliament Hill to celebrate a program that places agents known as “guardians” across Canada to care for lands and waters. The communal tent, known as a shaputuan in the Innu language, was organized by the Indigenous Leadership Initiative, a group that advocates for the guardian program nationally and promotes Indigenous-led conservation efforts.

‘Air-Conditioning’ Rivers and Streams Could Save Overheated Fish

‘Air-Conditioning’ Rivers and Streams Could Save Overheated Fish

And a new threat is gradually emerging. Water temperatures are warming, thanks to a combination of climate change and human water management techniques. And in some places they’re growing hot enough to kill the fish. “We’ve seen instances where we’ve had die-offs of coldwater species,” said Kathryn Smith, a doctoral candidate in the Coastal Hydrology Lab at Dalhousie University in Canada.

Pumping cold water into rivers could act as ‘air conditioning’ for fish

Pumping cold water into rivers could act as ‘air conditioning’ for fish

When water temperatures get too hot, fish can become stressed or even die. In rivers, Atlantic salmon and other cold-water species sometimes escape the heat by flocking to cooler areas, which often arise near groundwater springs or relatively cool tributaries. Lots of work has been done to preserve and augment these naturally occurring refuges, said Smith, of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, “but there hasn’t really been an emphasis or focus on if we can create cold-water habitat.”

Atlantic hurricanes rapidly churning into intense storms over warming water, study finds

Atlantic hurricanes rapidly churning into intense storms over warming water, study finds

The list of destructive post-tropical storms and hurricanes which have tracked through Atlantic Canada over the past few decades is an increasingly lengthy list. From Juan in 2003, Igor in 2010, Dorian in 2019 and Fiona in 2022, plus the many other damaging storms that have moved through, this region is certainly in a period of high tropical-storm activity.

N.S. government grant will help keep Atlantic salmon cool in Cheticamp River

N.S. government grant will help keep Atlantic salmon cool in Cheticamp River

People who want to protect the Atlantic salmon populations in Cape Breton say a small grant from the Nova Scotia government will have a big impact on their efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change in a local waterway. The Cheticamp River Salmon Association recently received $75,000 under the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund to help build deflectors, which are piles of rock that narrow the river channel and make the water deeper.

Living Lakes Canada water monitoring indicates climate impact

Living Lakes Canada water monitoring indicates climate impact

The Canadian Columbia Basin, which supplies fresh water to millions of people in Canada and the United States, is under threat due to climate change, according to Living Lakes Canada (LLC). LLC is a registered charity affiliated with the German Global Nature Fund’s Living Lakes International, a global network of organizations that work to enhance, protect, restore and rehabilitate freshwater areas around the globe.

Montreal building more sponge parks, sidewalks to soak up heavy rainfall

Montreal building more sponge parks, sidewalks to soak up heavy rainfall

The city of Montreal is planning to build more urban "sponge" infrastructure to protect against future flood waters brought on by climate change. The announcement Tuesday came as Montreal once again found itself drying out after heavy rainfall pummelled the city in the early morning. The city plans to build 30 sponge parks and 400 more sponge sidewalks by 2025  — green spaces that naturally absorb excess rainfall instead of draining the water directly into neighbourhood sewers.

Inside the battle to preserve the underwater ghosts of Ontario's Great Lakes

Inside the battle to preserve the underwater ghosts of Ontario's Great Lakes

Archeologists, historians and divers are trying to digitally capture more than 1,000 shipwrecks at the bottom of the Great Lakes before they become unrecognizable after a combination of invasive mussels and climate change have accelerated their deterioration at an alarming rate. The Great Lakes region is known among diving circles as one of the best places in the world to explore shipwrecks because the cold, fresh water offers ideal conditions for their preservation, even in shallow water. 

The Big Idea: Investing in “sponge cities” can mitigate the toll of climate change

The Big Idea: Investing in “sponge cities” can mitigate the toll of climate change

My fascination with water began as a child, when I saw rain for the first time. I spent the first 10 years of my life in the United Arab Emirates—one of the driest countries on Earth. My sister and I had eagerly anticipated the first rainfall of our lives, excited to put our new rain jackets to the test. When the first drops spattered on the windows of our house, I felt the excitement and joy bubble up inside me as we ran outside. The cool, calming sprinkle was unlike anything I had ever experienced.

As climate change impacts flooding, swaths of Canada risk becoming uninsurable

As climate change impacts flooding, swaths of Canada risk becoming uninsurable

But with proper adaptation methods, experts are hopeful that flooding can be tackled. In the middle of a busy re-election campaign during the summer of 2014, Burlington, Ontario mayor Rick Goldring’s basement flooded. More than 5.5 feet of water was gushing through it due to record rainfall. Goldring wasn’t alone: more than 3,000 homes in the city were flooded, and roads and businesses were severely impacted. “As far as the volume of rain, what was really off the charts was the intensity of the rain and how quickly it fell,” Goldring told The Weather Network (TWN) in a recent interview.

Why Vancouver is embracing brown lawns

Why Vancouver is embracing brown lawns

Vancouver is well known for its rainy climate but parched lawns are now a common sight in its sprawling suburbs and city parks. New restrictions on watering began early this summer and - unlike elsewhere - most residents are happy to comply. The grass in front of Sky Morfopoulos' home in East Vancouver is barely grass at all. Although the strands are brown and parched, tiny sprinkles of weeds and clovers blend in with the fading grass and present an illusion of a semi-green lawn.

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