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.
Keeping aquatic invasive species out of Jasper National Park is easy as long as every person cleans, drains and dries their watercraft after every outing. To drive home that message, Parks Canada is offering new summertime services including having staff rotating around several high-use water bodies to educate visitors on the risks and about what they can do.
