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.
Haldimand County says a flood warning is in effect for the Lake Erie shoreline until Tuesday morning as the area is expected to see strong winds and high waves. The county issued a community notice on Monday, saying the waves could be as high as two metres along the shoreline when the water level peaks in the evening. "Flooding is expected to impact low lying areas along the shoreline and could reach Flood Zone 2," read the notice.
Iqaluit Mayor Kenny Bell says the reported "unbearable" fuel smell from the city's water treatment plant on Oct. 8 was from repair work on the fuel line for the water plant's boiler. Government of Nunavut emails obtained by CBC News through an access to information request show staff from the Nunavut Health and Environment departments inspected the water treatment plant four days before the government of Nunavut's "do not consume" order was issued on Oct. 12.
British Columbia's Ministry of Health is warning residents in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley of possible water contamination connected to the recent flooding in the province. Record-setting precipitation fell between Nov. 14 and Dec. 2 in southwestern B.C., causing severe flooding that destroyed homes and farms, and caused landslides that killed several people. Officials say heavy rain may have caused overflow or failure of liquid manure storage systems in the region. The province says it is working with farm operators to reduce the risks of possible overflow.
Nunavut communities have seen a five-year high of water advisories in 2021, without counting Iqaluit’s ongoing water emergency. As of Friday, about a month before the year’s end, 14 water advisories had been issued in seven communities outside of the capital city this year, more than tripling the four advisories issued in 2017. Nunavut’s MP Lori Idlout spoke about the lack of clean water in Indigenous communities across Canada on Thursday. “We Indigenous people can no longer be discounted or written off in hopes that we disappear,” she said in Inuktitut in the House of Commons. “I know I have to keep repeating ‘clean water for all indigenous communities,'” Idlout said. “This is not the first time and I will repeat it again.”
Some Abbotsford residents will be able to return home after the city lifted an evacuation order for a portion of the Sumas Prairie as part of a "Return Home" plan unveiled on Friday. In a news conference, Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun lifted an evacuation order for around 240 properties in the north of the city effective immediately, as floodwaters dropped 12 inches — 30 centimetres — over the past 24 hours in the Sumas Prairie.
It’s the last chance to have your say and provide input on why Sault Ste. Marie should be the host of Canada’s Water Agency Initiative. The federal government announced earlier this year that it wants to establish a Canada Water Agency to improve freshwater management across the country. Ward 5 Coun. Corey Gardi has spearheaded the initiative for Sault Ste. Marie to host the future agency. Stakeholders called to the table include various organizations, Indigenous persons, youth and the community at large. The comments, ideas and concerns for clean-water issues will be incorporated in the city’s pitch to bring the Canada Water Agency to the Sault.
On a cool, damp evening, at a recent community meeting at a high school gym in northwest Washington, area residents voiced anger over inaction they believed had led to disastrous flooding. And they wanted to know from public officials what was going to be done to make sure it didn’t happen again. Residents pointed to the last major flood in 1990, which, like this one, had also driven devastating flood waters from the Nooksack River across the border to Abbotsford.
In the summer, the Sylvia Grinnell River near Iqaluit is a popular spot to fish for Arctic char where ice-cold water cascades over rocky ledges. Now, with thick layers of ice and snow covering the flowing water below, it has become one of the city's main water sources for drinking and cooking. The other comes in thousands of plastic water bottles that arrive by plane.
Western Quebec's health authority is investigating six cases of legionellosis that were recently reported in the region. So far, health officials have been unable to identify the source of the contamination, the Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de l'Outaouais (CISSSO) said in a Friday news release. Legionellosis is the broad term for a number of diseases, including legionnaires' disease, caused by the water-borne legionella bacteria.
As evacuation orders remain for hundreds of properties in southwest B.C., following catastrophic flooding that swept away houses and caused a municipality's wastewater system to fail — forcing its 7,000 residents to flee — experts say it's more important than ever to make homes flood resilient. This means exploring ways to mitigate property damage and better protect flood-vulnerable spaces in homes.
More residents of Merritt, B.C. will potentially be able to return home by the weekend, while others are being permitted limited daily access to their property as the area remains under an evacuation order. In a news release on Thursday, the City of Merritt said successful flood mitigation efforts prevented further flooding during three major rain storms that battered southwestern B.C. this past week, allowing officials to move forward with their "Return Home Plan."
The Cariboo Regional District has issued a water quality advisory, to the Horse Lake water users as a result of levels of manganese (Mn) in its drinking water supply. The quality of the drinking water has not changed, but the move is due to changed Canadian guidelines for drinking water. Health Canada established a new maximum acceptable concentration for manganese in drinking water of 0.12 mg/L. Historical water test results show that the wells in Horse lake have produced between 0.14 to 0.29 mg/L of manganese. These manganese levels vary per well and what time of year the tests were taken.
The Trudeau government has not set aside enough money to maintain and operate water treatments systems in Indigenous communities, according to a new report from the parliamentary budget officer. While the Liberals have more than enough money to build the systems, they are $138 million a year short on providing help to First Nations to maintain them, said Yves Giroux. Canada still has 43 long-term drinking water advisories in 31 Indigenous communities across the country, down considerably from when the Liberals first came to office. But the government admitted last year it would not meet its initial promise to address all of the advisories in the first five years in office.
For Iqaluit youths Joseph Ashoona and Deion Pearce, the recent suicide of a beloved friend in their hockey community was their breaking point. “This is enough, we’re drawing the line here,” Pearce said in a joint video interview with CTVNews.ca Wednesday. “We’ve lost too many friends, close friends [and] family members.” The COVID-19 pandemic, the recent water crisis in Iqaluit and the decades-long housing, health and mental health crises are all factors contributing to Nunavut’s ongoing suicide epidemic.
The 824MW Muskrat Falls Hydroelectric Generating Station, a key part of the Lower Churchill Project in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, is now complete and has been released to the Newfoundland and Labrador System Operator (NLSO) for service. The Muskrat Falls Corporation received notice of acceptance of the commissioning certificate by the Independent Engineer, who provides oversight on behalf of the Federal Government, late Thursday, November 25.
Some Nova Scotians in northern Cape Breton have been able to get around storm-damaged roads by boat, but in another part of Victoria County, others are still cut off and waiting for relief, after heavy rains and high winds battered the region last week. "It's very heartbreaking out here," said Bev MacAskill, who lives on Oregon Road just off the Cabot Trail. "We have no way to get out except by helicopter."
On the rack in the backyard, the little red canoe is withdrawn, overturned and not liking it, and the crest of snow on the canvas is visible along the tumblehome. It yearns for open water now closing in on this writer. Back in 2007, after much input from listeners and a panel of judges, the CBC Radio show Sounds Like Canada picked the canoe as one of the country's seven wonders. One of those judges was Roy MacGregor. “It may have been the promise of a railroad to the Pacific that made Canada whole,” writes Roy in his book, Original Highways: Travelling the Great Rivers of Canada, "but it was rivers that carried the people west and made that railroad necessary.”
Between 60 and 90 millimetres of rain is forecast for most regions, except up to 120 millimetres over the northern sections of Metro Vancouver, including the North Shore mountains and Pitt Meadows. Squamish could see up to 150 millimetres, according to the rainfall warning posted Wednesday morning. The agency warns elevated freezing levels and snowmelt may contribute to increased runoff. The rain is expected to taper off tonight.
The municipality of Lakeshore will be getting a new much-needed upgrade to its sewage facility after the plant reached its operational capacity last year putting a damper on new development in the region. "We had fears that it could be two [or] three years before we would get this built and we're pleased it's moving along so fast," Lakeshore mayor Tom Bain said.
Bank of America and Canadian charity Water First Education & Training Inc. today announced their funding partnership to support the delivery of hands-on skills training through drinking water treatment and environmental water science internships for young Indigenous adults. Bank of America is committing $1 million US over four years, which will contribute resources for more young Indigenous adults to become water treatment plant operators and support their communities to ensure safe, clean drinking water.
