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Latest news about the Safe Drinking Water Team
A farmer north of Edmonton considers himself lucky to have survived this harvest season. That's no joke about poor weather conditions and long hours in the combine. The evening of Sept. 26, Andy Shwetz in Waskatenau was heavy harrowing (breaking up and spreading straw on a combined field) on a quarter of land that contains a former town water well.
Before the liturgy, making the Sign of the Cross towards the four cardinal points — according to indigenous custom — the pope blessed a bowl of the lake’s water, which was brought up to a small wooden structure, shaped like a teepee, overlooking the lake. The pope, after spending a moment in prayer sitting at the water's edge in his wheelchair, later sprinkled the crowds with the blessed water.
A stunning new nature documentary, Wings Over Water, will make its Canadian debut this Friday at the TELUS World of Science - Edmonton. The IMAX® film follows the migratory journeys of three bird species that make remarkable, and often harrowing, flights to the wetlands of North America's prairies to breed and raise their young. Audiences will be captivated by the stories of the sandhill crane, yellow warbler and mallard as they soar across one of the most important—yet little known—ecosystems on the continent.
An Indigenous-led group plans to offer to buy a majority stake in the Trans Mountain oil pipeline from the Canadian government this week or next, a deal that could help Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mitigate election-year criticism from environmentalists. The group, called Project Reconciliation, aims to submit the $6.9 billion offer as early as Friday, managing director Stephen Mason told Reuters, and start negotiations with Ottawa two weeks later. Project Reconciliation said the investment will alleviate First Nations poverty, a watershed for Indigenous people who have historically watched Canada’s resources enrich others.
Looming changes to Health Canada’s acceptable concentration levels of lead in drinking water could see a wash of city homes creep above the recommended level, Epcor warned city council’s utility committee Thursday. Presently, it’s considered safe to have up to 10 micrograms per litre in drinking water. But Epcor officials said Thursday that the federal health agency is signalling it will lower that level to five micrograms per litre, a change that will affect more than 30,000 Edmonton homes.
The Coldwater Indian Band, which asserts traditional territories in south-central B.C., said the pipeline route passes an aquifer that is the sole supply of drinking water for its main reserve “This is a major victory for my community,” said Coldwater Chief Lee Spahan. “Thankfully, the court has stepped in where Canada has failed to protect and respect our rights and our water.”
