Water News
Alberta Water News is a free, subscription-based service that provides the latest information on water news across Alberta and upcoming events.
The news is distributed weekly on Mondays via a collated email and Monday to Friday via WaterPortal social media (X was Twitter). Please note that news will not be distributed on Holiday Mondays and will be released the following Tuesday.
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Revolutionizing water worker safety using innovative tech
Water Canada
The workers responsible for providing clean water to our communities and homes often work long hours and may work alone. They are exposed to various occupational hazards, including slips, trips, and falls, violence, assault, and mental health challenges. As a result, ensuring their safety can be a complex issue, but is achievable through careful planning, the implementation of appropriate safety policies, and leveraging the right technology. Click here to continue reading
City of Calgary ready for 2023 flood season
City of Calgary
Mid-May marks the start of Calgary’s river flood season, and The City of Calgary is ready. Annual flood preparations are complete and the 24/7 monitoring of river conditions, weather forecasts and the melting mountain snowpack is well underway. While recent rains and an early melting snowpack have resulted in higher river flows than normal for mid-May, Calgary’s chance of flooding this year is still considered normal. Click here to continue reading
‘Higher than normal’ flow rate on Calgary rivers, city says
CTV News
The risk of flooding in Calgary this year is considered “normal,” officials said Monday, but cautioned that forecasts could “change dramatically.” The City of Calgary says its flood preparations are complete ahead of the 2023 flood season, which began on Monday. Click here to continue reading
Alberta regulator monitoring death of more birds at Suncor tailings pond
Calgary Herald
The Alberta Energy Regulator said Sunday it was monitoring the situation after 27 waterfowl were found dead at one of Suncor Energy’s oilsands tailings ponds. The company informed the regulator on May 13 that the birds were found at its Syncrude Mildred Lake Settling Basin, AER said in a post on its website. Click here to continue reading
Soil erosion causes problems on irrigated land
The Western Producer
Soil erosion caused by stronger winds and drier winters is becoming an increasing problem in southern Alberta on irrigated land, as well as for root crops, said an expert. It is affecting some of the most expensive land in the province, with farmers permanently losing soil in a day that took hundreds, if not thousands, of years to build up, said Ken Coles, executive director of Farming Smarter. “I took pictures myself of fence lines completely covered, ditches completely filled up, so when it happens, it’s kind of a catastrophic event.” Click here to continue reading
Low Lacombe Lake water levels a concern
Red Deer Advocate
The lake, three kilometres long and 500 metres wide between Blackfalds and Lacombe is only three metres deep at its deepest point. As it grows more shallow natural nutrients become more concentrated and sunlight can penetrate further, causing more plant growth. As those plants and weeds decay they use up oxygen needed by fish. Click here to continue reading
Sask. allots funds for flood, drought preparation
The Western Producer
The Saskatchewan government is spending $2 million this year on flood mapping in at-risk communities. The Water Security Agency identified Moose Jaw, Saskatoon, Regina, Weyburn, Tisdale and Melfort under the Flood Hazard Identification Mapping Program this year. Click here to continue reading
Alberta Energy Regulator warns Imperial Oil about more wastewater problems at Kearl oilsands mine
CBC News
The Alberta Energy Regulator has warned Imperial Oil about more wastewater problems at its Kearl oilsands mine in northern Alberta. The regulator has issued a notice of non-compliance to the company after chemicals associated with oilsands tailings were found at an off-site well at levels that exceed provincial guidelines. Click here to continue reading
Water management is another form of risk management
The Western Producer
In one of the driest and most unpredictable growing regions in the world, irrigation and water management could become the most important form of risk management farmers employ. That truth is becoming more obvious as farmers’ need for financial stability collides with others’ demands that farmers farm more sustainably and with fewer greenhouse gas emissions. But if governments and others want farmers to leap ahead in water management, they might have to pay for it. Click here to continue reading
Compare and Contrast: Wheat market’s reaction to U.S. rain baffles grain sector
The Western Producer
Industry officials are flummoxed by recent wheat market behaviour. Hard Red Winter Wheat (HRWW) July futures tumbled 16 percent between April 18 and May 2. The freefall was due in part to a two-day rain during the last week of April that delivered up to 100 millimetres of moisture to parts of the southern U.S. Plains. Click here to continue reading