Neskantaga First Nation in Ontario has had to boil water since 1995. “We’re over 20 years already where our people haven’t been able to get the water they need to drink from their taps or to bathe themselves without getting any rashes,” Neskantaga Chief Wayne Moonias told CBC News in 2015. Their water issues have […]
Water
Posted inNews + Opinion
SCIENCE MATTERS: “World class” may not mean much when it comes to oil spill response
[Image-1] In July, a pipeline leak near Maidstone, Saskatchewan, spilled about 250,000 litres of diluted oil sands bitumen into the North Saskatchewan River, killing wildlife and comprising drinking water for nearby communities, including Prince Albert. It was one of 11 spills in the province over the previous year. In October, a tugboat pulling an empty […]
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SCIENCE MATTERS: The future of hydro in a warming world
[Image-1] People have harnessed energy from moving water for thousands of years. Greeks used various types of water wheels to grind grain in mills more than 2,000 years ago. In the late 1800s, people figured out how to harness the power to produce electricity. Throughout the 20th century and into the 21st, hydropower has expanded, […]
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Swimming in Halifax Harbour
[Image-1] I’m flying around on a tube attached to a rope. I can see the city, just a few hundred metres off in the distance. I can feel the tops of my feet skidding across the water—my toes slicing the surface at 30 kilometres an hour. My hair, soaked, takes on a tentacle form and […]
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Halifax Water is estimating bills due to that labour strike
[Image-1] Alia Saied fully expected her latest water bill was going to be cheaper than usual. She and her partner had just returned from a month away, so they couldn’t explain how their water consumption had somehow increased. “Our usual bill is like $200, so suddenly I was like, ‘Why is it $300?’” Short-staffed due […]
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You can probably forget about that giant waterslide, Halifax
[Image-1] A giant waterslide down Citadel Hill was a dream too beautiful for this world. Turns out Slide the City’s previously announced urban waterpark pop-up has been delayed indefinitely. “We are beyond bummed to announce this, but we have to postpone Slide the City Halifax,” reads a Facebook post from the company that was published […]
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Ferry terminal lacks fountains
[Image-1] What’s wrong? There’s a drought of drinking fountains at the Alderney Ferry Terminal. Thirsty travellers are perfectly free to enjoy a refreshing drink at the Halifax and Woodside terminals. Only Alderney remains inexplicably dry. The only option for paying customers on the Dartmouth side who want H2O is the lukewarm, fecal-infused liquid coming from […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Peter Kelly wears the sewage disaster
[Editor’s note: this story is one of five Coast articles selected as finalists for the 2010 Atlantic Journalism Awards. All five stories are collected here.] “It’s a frustration,” allows Peter Kelly. Throughout a half-hour interview in his City Hall office, Kelly seems genuinely pained by the course of events related to Halifax’s failed sewage treatment […]
