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.
Climate geoscientist Joseph Shea didn't have to go far to find evidence of what he calls "exceptional'' hot and dry weather in British Columbia this year. He says he was still gathering raspberries in his garden in Prince George, B.C., last week as temperatures neared 20 C, at a time when the historical average maximum is about 9 C.
The ongoing drought in many parts of B.C. is causing some rivers in the province's northern Interior to reach their driest mid-October levels in years. In Prince George, the unusually low waters have locals worried. Harriet Schoeter moved to the northern B.C. city 60 years ago, and loves walking the shore where the Fraser and Nechako rivers meet. This week, the water was so low she could almost walk right across.
Many others, in Lake Babine Nation and beyond, share Charlie’s concern. The Babine River is an integral tributary for Skeena sockeye, which is a major sockeye run in B.C., second only to the Fraser River. Skeena sockeye are central to Lake Babine Nation health and economy. Every bad year has future ramifications. If fewer salmon return to spawn one year, it can mean a lower return four or five years down the line — the length of the sockeye life cycle.
With warming temperatures increasing the likelihood of rising water levels, British Columbians are encouraged to prepare for potential spring floods, while the Province, local governments and First Nations work together to keep people and communities safe. High-elevation snowpacks have not yet developed to the point that increased heat will cause significant runoff. At this time, forecasters are not anticipating a flood hazard over this current warming period for rivers lying in higher elevations, including larger rivers such as the Fraser River.
The federal government says it's making Canada's largest investment ever in protecting the nation's sources of fresh water — including the Great Lakes. Commitments announced by the government during U.S. President Joe Biden's visit and in the recent budget bring the federal government's total investment to $750 million, said Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault.
Today’s federal budget recognized that investing in clean water and climate action will deliver many benefits to the economy, to communities, as well as to the health and quality of life of Canadians. As the Government of Canada outlined its intentions to build a clean economy, one that aims to advance sustainable development while reducing environmental risks, new investments in freshwater protection and biodiversity will make important contributions to this goal. Budget 2023 announced new measures to support monitoring, assessment, and restoration of some of Canada’s most iconic – and threatened – lakes and rivers. Over 10 years, $650 million will help to assess and rejuvenate the Great Lakes, Lake Winnipeg, Lake of the Woods, St. Lawrence River, Fraser River, Saint John River, Mackenzie River, and Lake Simcoe.
A Mitchell Island metal and used car recycling company requested the right to continue flushing contaminated water into the Fraser River, while it appeals an earlier order to stop the practice. The request was denied. The Environmental Appeal Board, a provincial body that hears appeals of such orders, said it is in the public interest to keep the order for Richmond Steel Recycling (RSR) in place to protect the environment.
The Canadian Coast Guard has activated a pollution response after a partially submerged 65 foot fishing boat leaking oil and fuel was found off the north end of Deas Island in the Fraser River near Richmond on Sunday. The boat could be seen listing to its port side several metres off the north end of Deas Island, near the Massey Tunnel. Fisheries and Oceans Canada told Global News a 'limited amount' of oil and fuel has been discharged into the water.
A First Nation in British Columbia will receive a boost from the province for shoreline stabilization, with the chief saying it is under consistent threat of flooding. The $5 million aimed at so-called riprap erosion control measures is going to the Sqwa First Nation, Shxwha:y Village and the City of Chilliwack. The announcement comes a week after the province provided $23.4 million in funding to 49 communities to help reduce risks from future disasters related to natural hazards and climate change, including $150,000 for a drainage pump station upgrade design in Chilliwack.
As the financial costs of climate change climb, experts and governments are quickly coming to the consensus that man-made structures won't be enough to protect coastal communities. For biologist Dan Stewart, the answer is obvious, and on a recent overcast day, he was looking at it: from the edge of the Boundary Bay dike, a more than 200 metre-thick band of salt marsh reached out to the sea.
An earth sciences professor says large chunks of ice formed in the Fraser River and washed ashore near Agassiz B.C. were likely caused by unseasonably cold weather from earlier in December. They were first spotted on the shores near the Agassiz-Rosedale bridge Wednesday afternoon, which is about an hour and 30 minute drive east of Vancouver.
Crews are nearly done putting the final piles in the mighty Fraser River to finish the foundation for the new Pattullo bridge. The $1.3-billion project will see the original bridge replaced with a modern version, one that is being touted as less invasive, will have a reduced hydraulic effect on down river infrastructure and is up to modern-seismic code.
After three parched months, much of B.C. is experiencing drought and ongoing hot weather has left streams running dry, leaving no way for some salmon to return to their spawning grounds, killing hundreds in a mass die-off on the province's central coast. The situation has scientists and salmon watchers concerned. The Pacific Salmon Commission initially projected a return of 9.8 million fish to the Fraser River this year. By August, predictions were reduced to 5.5 million. This was readjusted again, on Sept. 28, to 6.8 million. There were record-low rainfalls in September, and dry weather and heat has continued into October, a month known for rain. For some migrating salmon, that lack of moisture is proving deadly.
Abbotsford’s dikes are in a better position than last year when atmospheric rivers deluged the Lower Mainland-U.S. border area, flooding Abbotsford’s Sumas Prairie, said Mayor Henry Braun, but the area is still highly vulnerable. It needs both a short-term fix and long-term $800 million pumping station to be built as soon as possible. The city wants to see the proposed pumping station uncoupled from its $2.8 billion approved multi-phase flood mitigation plan that will enable more water to be pumped away from valued agricultural land that was flooded when the U.S. based Nooksack River overflowed.
A megathrust earthquake could shatter Metro Vancouver’s capacity to send water to its 21 municipalities, a new report says. The heavily redacted report, published internally by the regional body in February but recently obtained by Glacier Media, indicates a 9 magnitude earthquake could lead to 267 water main failures across the region. Some of the most worrying failures, confirmed Metro staff and independent experts, are forecast to occur where all of the region’s main trunk lines pass under bodies of water — from dammed mountain lakes on the North Shore, under the Burrard Inlet, and down the line, below the Fraser River.
Two First Nations say they will appeal parts of a British Columbia Supreme Court ruling released last month that rejected their bid for an injunction to restore the natural flows of the Nechako River. The river in central B.C. has been diverted for 70 years to generate hydroelectricity for mining giant Rio Tinto's aluminum division and the province's power grid. The Saik'uz and Stellat'en First Nations announced Thursday they plan to bring a "limited appeal'' of the Jan. 7 ruling, asking the higher court to order the restoration of flows for the Nechako that would re-establish "the natural functions of the river.''
Traylor-Aecon General Partnership has been awarded a $288 million contract by Metro Vancouver for the Annacis Water Supply Tunnel, Fraser River Crossing project in B.C. The partnership is a consortium comprised of Aecon (40 per cent) and Traylor Bros Inc. (60 per cent). Aecon Group Inc. announced its share of the contract will be added to its construction segment backlog in the first quarter of 2022.
A flood-stranded sturgeon is now back in the comfortable confines of the main stem of the Fraser River thanks to the volunteer efforts and cardiovascular capacity of two angling guides, who pushed, pulled and carried the giant fish two kilometres to deep water. The sturgeon was discovered by a helicopter crew flying near British Columbia's Herrling Island, between Hope and Agassiz, on Thursday. Video sent to the Fraser Valley Angling Guides Association (FVAGA) shows it struggling in an isolated and shallow pool left behind by receding floodwaters from recent catastrophic rains in B.C.
Officials in Abbotsford, B.C., are urging residents who were told to evacuate Sumas Prairie earlier Tuesday to leave immediately saying worsening conditions pose "a significant risk to life." At a news conference Tuesday night, city officials said a pump station is in imminent danger of failing. The Barrowtown Pump Station is the only thing keeping excess water flow from the Fraser River from entering the flooded area.
Delta will soon take part in a gathering of local and indigenous governments south of the Fraser River to see what can be done to improve water quality of the Canadian-US shared waters of Boundary Bay. Members of the Shared Waters Alliance, an international working group made up of representatives from government, First Nations and community groups from both countries, made a presentation to Delta council last week to discuss the ongoing shellfish harvesting closure on the Canadian side due to bacteriological contamination. Indigenous peoples, including the Semiahmoo First Nation, traditionally harvested the abundant fish and shellfish resources for their livelihood. The Alliance’s objectives include, among other things, a collaborative approach to monitoring and facilitating transparent communication among stakeholders to bring action-based objectives that will achieve measurable improvements in local water quality.
