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

Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative

Tiny inviting authorities dealing with Great Lakes water levels for a discussion

Tiny inviting authorities dealing with Great Lakes water levels for a discussion

While they say they realize building shoreline resilience is important, Tiny councillors first want to chat with authorities involved with Great Lakes' water levels. Coun. Tony Mintoff said he appreciated the value of developing resilience, but he also believed a multi-pronged approach needs to be taken. “While we're looking at opportunities to create resiliency for those property owners, I think it's also responsible that we put our foot on the accelerator in terms of the governing bodies,” he said at a recent committee of the whole meeting.

Stopping algae blooms may start on farmlands

Stopping algae blooms may start on farmlands

A handful of Chatham farms might hold the answer to reducing toxic algae blooms in the Great Lakes. These farms are collecting and analyzing their agricultural runoff, in hope of reducing the amount of phosphorus entering the waterways. It's part of a project, started by two organizations in Spring 2016, which aims to come up with a strategy to deal with toxic algae blooms. Out of that idea for the project — between the Ontario Federation of Agriculture and the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative — came the Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Collaborative.

Follow us