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.
Along with the recent addition of a pumper that carries twice as much water, another change has been made to improve fire response in the countryside. Most structure fires in the rural area require at least three tankers to create an efficient shuttle to provide water in the absence of fire hydrants. New “Automatic Aid” arrangements are being put in place with Grey Highlands and with Shelburne fire services that will get trucks rolling 10 to 15 minutes earlier.
The Government of Canada is being asked to take action to protect the Alliston aquifer, which is said to have the purest water known to science. Tiny Township resident Erik Schomann has initiated a House of Commons e-petition, with the help of Simcoe North MP Adam Chambers and former MP Bruce Stanton. This petition is urging the federal government to use the Canada Water Act and any other relevant legislation to protect the pristine waters of the Simcoe Uplands — also known as French’s Hill — so that research may proceed into how this purity is created and maintained.
A letter from Rankin Inlet, Nunavut Mayor says the community urgently needs its water and sewer infrastructure replaced. MLA for Rankin Inlet North-Chesterfield Inlet, Alexander Sammurtok, tabled the letter in the legislature on March 9. The letter from Mayor Harry Towtongie says the utilidor system has reached critical capacity and has caused council to delay and even stop developments in the community.
When Patricia Paul saw her bathtub filling with cloudy, brown water, she decided she’d had enough. She took a photo of the scene: three inches of water so thick and dark, the bottom of the tub couldn’t be seen – a sharp contrast to the white plastic tub walls decorated with duck and turtle stickers for her young children. “It was almost black, and it smelled gross,” Paul remembers.
Rama First Nation lawyer Stephanie Willsey has made a big splash on behalf of her fellow Indigenous people. Willsey recently won an $8-billion class-action lawsuit against the federal government on behalf of reserves who have not had access to clean drinking water. Willsey’s legal journey to ensure there is clean drinking water on Canada's reserves started when she joined Mccarthy Tétrault in 2016. The Orillia District Collegiate and Vocational Institute (ODCVI) graduate began working for the Toronto-based firm straight out of law school.
I’m staring out my window into a snow drift almost to the eaves. Near-record accumulation and continued freezing temperatures are raising fears of widespread spring flooding, something we haven’t experienced in several years. Rather, we’ve lately become more familiar with the unpredictable flooding caused by extreme rain events. That’s the bad news. But last summer’s widespread drought severely depleted soil moisture, which means there’s a very large capacity to absorb excess runoff; and another dry spring could have spelled disaster for farmers. The good news is, with a gradual thaw and not much spring rain, our farmers could be in good shape heading into the growing season.
Yukon Energy is again asking for permission this year to lower the level of Marsh Lake, in anticipation of possible flooding this summer. The company has submitted an "urgent" application to the Yukon Water Board to amend its licence for this year. If approved, Yukon Energy would open a downstream dam this spring to allow Marsh Lake to drop by up to 10 centimetres below what's normally allowed.
In a rooftop greenhouse near downtown Denver, cash crops are thriving on hydroponic life support. Arugula. Chard. Escarole. Cabbage. “And basil,” said Altius Farms CEO Sally Herbert, plucking a bright leaf. “Which you really should taste. Because it’s magnificent.” The vertical farm is one of many Colorado models for coping with increasing water scarcity in the western United States, as climate change makes droughts more frequent and more severe.
Farmers can now receive annual payments to protect and monitor nature on their lands through the new ALUS Peel Pilot. ALUS, the Region of Peel, Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) have partnered to expand the Peel Rural Water Quality Program in a new three-year pilot project. “The Region of Peel and TRCA are pleased to support this new partnership,” said Jennifer Innis, Regional Councillor, Chair of TRCA’s Board of Directors, and member of the Peel Agricultural Advisory Working Group. “Building upon the success and reputation of the Peel Rural Water Quality Program, we are excited to extend additional support to farmers to help them manage their land and water to improve soil, water and air quality, and enhance wildlife habitat.”
The winter of 2021-2022 has had its share of drastic temperature swings that could have flooding implications for homeowners in the not-too-distant future. The freeze-thaw cycle has been repetitive this season which could accentuate stress on building foundations. As a result, older homes with cinder-block basements are especially at risk of structural damage.
Leaders from B.C. and Washington state say they have reached an agreement to work together on redeveloping a flooding prevention plan and response for the Nooksack River. Flooding in southern B.C. and northern Washington in November displaced an estimated 500 people south of the border and about 14,000 were forced to flee their homes on the Canadian side. Rising water levels in the Nooksack contributed to flooding on the Sumas Prairie in Abbotsford and resulted in billions of dollars of damage to the province’s agriculture industry. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says in a release that flooding will continue to worsen in the face of population growth, development and climate change, and a long-term approach on both sides of the border is needed.
For many southern Saskatchewan producers still reeling from last year’s drought conditions, a recent report on the spring runoff outlook may not offer much comfort. And perhaps no comfort at all, for those in the southwest. A news release, sent to accompany the Water Security Agency’s (WSA) March 1 report, states the organization “is currently expecting a below to well below normal snowmelt runoff response over much of southern Saskatchewan.” “Only areas east of Moose Jaw are forecast to receive near or above normal runoff,” the release reads.
Weather in Thunder Bay, Ont., will grow warmer, wetter and less predictable over the next 30 years, and that will affect everything from our risk from floods and forest fires to food prices, and mental and physical health, experts say. But, they say, there is much that can be done at a local level to mitigate those effects and prevent further warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its latest report on Feb. 28, cataloguing how humans and the natural world are being affected by the changing climate and how they can adapt.
A promise made by the Trudeau Liberal government in 2015 to get rid of all long-term drinking water advisories on First Nations has been strengthened by a class action settlement. “It’s a legal obligation now,” said counsel Harry LaForme of Olthuis Kleer Townshend (OKT). “That whole notion that the water issue is a political issue to do the best they can and is not enforceable by law, for the 250 (First Nations) we have, that’s now changed,” said LaForme. “Their promise, at least to the class members that we have, is now no longer just their goodwill.”
The Yukon government is mapping areas that were hit hard by record-setting floods last year, according to officials. "We're doing flood mapping in every Yukon community," Community Services Minister Richard Mostyn said in the Legislative Assembly yesterday. "That's not something that we've done before, and we're going to continue to work to ensure our communities are safe, just like we did last year." Last summer, rapid snowmelt caused serious flooding, eventually spurring the territorial government to declare a state of emergency for the Southern Lakes and Lake Laberge areas. Some Yukoners were forced from their homes and the Canadian military was posted in the territory for months to help shore up lakefront properties.
Heavy traffic is often associated with air pollution but a new study from the University of Toronto suggests it’s a major contributor to water pollution, too. The study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, found that chemicals commonly used in vehicle fluids, tires and paints were much higher in rivers next to roads with heavy traffic. “We found a strong relationship between traffic and the concentration of these chemicals,” says Tife Awonaike, a recent PhD graduate from the department of physical and environmental science at U of T Scarborough who is lead author of the study.
The island world that I have experienced and observed has come to share with me its wisdom. It has shown me that our natural environment has changed. Alarmingly so. I had first become fully aware of those changes in the early 1990s. At the time I was getting set to cross the channel between Christian Island (Georgian Bay) and Cedar Point on the mainland. I was aboard a snowmobile and it was during this time of year (mid-March). I was on my way to Ottawa to meet with Indian Affairs officials to advocate on behalf of my people as the Chief. I was making a plea for a safer, reliable means of transportation. The ice was still thick enough to hold a snowmobile, but it was degrading quickly. The ferry had stopped running three weeks before and was now at ease in her winter harbour.
A cleaner environment, middle class jobs, and more money in Canadians' pockets: upgrading buildings to be more energy-efficient and investing in clean infrastructure fights climate change and creates good jobs, all while making sure municipalities, homeowners and businesses save on their energy bills. That is why the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, on behalf of the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, and Scott Pearce, Second Vice-President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) to announce a combined investment totalling more than $12.6 million through FCM's Green Municipal Fund (GMF) to help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reduce waste and improve the quality of water in communities across Quebec.
Canada’s mining industry is pushing back against proposed tougher federal coal effluent rules, saying the draft regulations aren’t practical or backed by science. “We just do not see a path to achieving those limits,” said Pierre Gratton of the Mining Association of Canada, which expressed its concerns in a March 2 letter to Environment Canada. “(Environment Canada) has not articulated a justification for going further than the limits that have been agreed to.” The federal government has been trying to write effluent rules for coal since 2017, in response to requests from industry.
Spring may be just around the corner in Saskatchewan. Daytime temperatures above freezing this week are a welcome relief from what has been a long, cold winter. Temperatures in Regina are forecast to hit 8 C by the end of the week, while Saskatoon will see highs of 6 C, Swift Current could hit double digits and even Uranium City will reach a high of –1 C.
