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.
Officials at Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans are weighing in on a troublesome question. Should they allow a healthy lake to be poisoned — even temporarily — to avert a potential disaster for the Miramichi River's wild Atlantic salmon? That question became urgent this fall with the discovery of dozens of smallmouth bass had appeared in Miramichi's southwest branch.
