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.
With the water level in Cowichan Lake higher than it has been at this time of year for some time, Catalyst Crofton increased the flow rate at the weir on the Cowichan River to 10 cubic metres per second on Sept. 16. Brian Houle, the environmental manager for Catalyst Crofton which operates the weir that regulates the flow of water from the lake to the river, said the water levels in the lake are very close to the maximum that is allowed.
The town of Lake Cowichan on Vancouver Island will start using pumps to keep the local river flowing, due to one of the most severe droughts its watershed has experienced. Water from Cowichan Lake will start being pumped into the Cowichan River on Thursday. Catalyst Crofton, the company that will manage the process, says 11 droughts have plagued the Cowichan basin since 1998.
