A group of Manitoban women are walking around Lake Winnipeg to raise awareness about water quality.
Katherine Sinclair was shocked to learn that Lake Winnipeg was named the most threatened lake of 2013 by Global Nature Fund. She decided to take action and organized the Lake Winnipeg Water Walk.
The walkers left from Norway House on July 12 on a 1,032 km trek around Lake Winnipeg.
Sinclair says threats to the lake impact all Manitobans.
“In 10 years the world’s 10th-largest fresh water lake is no longer going to be able to carry life anymore,” she said.
The group stopped in lakeside communities across the province to share their project and message.
“I think my favourite part about this spiritual journey, the walk we’ve undertaken, is the people and the support that we’ve received from the communities,” said walker Jessica Ford.
The Lake Winnipeg Water Walk wraps up on August 8 in Manigotogan. Closing ceremonies and a community feast will be held.
To learn more about the Lake Winnipeg water walk you can log on to the Lake Winnipeg Water Walk website.
A water expert from Manitoba says people in our province can learn something from the massive water scare in the United States.
"We can see this anywhere, at any time, so people should be on the lookout, especially if they are using lake water or other surface water for drinking, and they should always be weary of the algae blooms," said University of Winnipeg professor Eva Pip.
The taps were turned off in Toledo, Ohio for more than 400,000 people over fear of algae blooms.
Pip says you can't treat algae-affected water to make it safe. Boiling the water doesn't work and chlorine makes it worse.
Pip says Manitoba has had excessive levels of green blue algae.
She says Winnipeg’s water at Shoal Lake is monitored carefully but people at cottages should be extra careful.
In Ohio, people stocked up on bottled water and were banned from drinking tap water for two days, but today it was deemed safe to drink again.
