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.
"The challenge is not necessarily our water sources, but rather our ability to produce and deliver it, " said Marie-Josée Asselin, vice-president of the city's executive committee. "When everyone consumes water at the same time, this is when we put ourselves at risk in terms of distribution and production." Quebec City found that watering lawns has put the most pressure on its drinking water tanks in dry weather.
