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Latest news about the Safe Drinking Water Team
The article described the catch as an "Ogopogo," which is a gibberish word derived from nx̌ax̌aitkʷ in the Syilx language — pronounced "n-ha-ha-it-koo" — meaning "something in the water," according to Chief Byron Louis of the Okanagan Indian Band, one of the seven communities of the Syilx Nation in B.C. The mystical creature's name and story carry religious meaning to the Syilx Nation and is believed to inhabit Okanagan Lake.
The first Indigenous owned and operated water utility in Canada developed by way of public-private-community partnership is a step closer to reality in the North Okanagan. A formal agreement has been signed between the Okanagan Indian Band Group of Companies, EPCOR and Enterprise Canada. The companies will identify commercial opportunities in utilities-related infrastructure, including water, wastewater and irrigation management, to provide quality drinking water and ensure adequate firefighting supply to serve the OKIB reserve lands.
