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The water management framework for the Industrial Heartland and Capital Region

Description

This report is the result of consultation, collaboration and future-focused planning for growth by Alberta Environment, industry, municipalities, and representatives from municipal water and... More ≫

Description

This report is the result of consultation, collaboration and future-focused planning for growth by Alberta Environment, industry, municipalities, and representatives from municipal water and wastewater treatment facilities in the North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance.

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Report on Canada Creosote site - North Bow screening level risk assessment update

Description

This follow-up investigation and screening level HHRA update was completed to address data gaps and recommendations outlined in the HHRA previously conducted by Golder in 2010 and 201.... More ≫

Description

This follow-up investigation and screening level HHRA update was completed to address data gaps and recommendations outlined in the HHRA previously conducted by Golder in 2010 and 201. Specifically, the objective of this investigation was to collect additional seasonal groundwater and soil vapour data at the site, and to update the previous HHRA based on this new data. The soil vapour sampling events carried out as part of this investigation targeted times of year when groundwater levels were expected to be at their approximate lowest and the vapour risk was assumed to be at its approximate highest.

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Athabasca River water management framework : Alberta's regulatory backstop to protect the Athabasca River

Description

Alberta Environment is setting strict limits on how much water oil sands companies can remove from the Athabasca River under a new framework that sets maximum withdrawals. With this unprecedented... More ≫

Description

Alberta Environment is setting strict limits on how much water oil sands companies can remove from the Athabasca River under a new framework that sets maximum withdrawals. With this unprecedented action, Alberta Environment is putting in place a water management framework for immediate protection of the Athabasca. Alberta is providing this regulatory backstop as an interim measure while key stakeholders continue to work on long-term planning to safeguard the river.

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Guideline for preparing agricultural feasibility reports for irrigation projects

Description

Agricultural feasibility reports are used by Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development to determine water requirements for irrigation projects and to determine if source water and... More ≫

Description

Agricultural feasibility reports are used by Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development to determine water requirements for irrigation projects and to determine if source water and soils are suitable for irrigation.

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North Saskatchewan integrated water quality model enhancement for scenarios analysis : final report

Description

The North Saskatchewan River (NSR) watershed in Alberta drains 57,000 square kilometers. The sparsely populated NSR headwaters are at the Saskatchewan Glacier in Banff National Park and are mostly... More ≫

Description

The North Saskatchewan River (NSR) watershed in Alberta drains 57,000 square kilometers. The sparsely populated NSR headwaters are at the Saskatchewan Glacier in Banff National Park and are mostly pristine. The river flows more than 1,000 kilometers from its headwaters to the Alberta– Saskatchewan border with an annual outflow of 7.2 billion cubic meters. The NSR joins the South Saskatchewan River and eventually flows into Lake Winnipeg. Water use along the NSR and its tributaries includes human consumption, waste assimilation, hydroelectric power generation, oil and gas extraction, mining, and agriculture. Major dams in the watershed are two hydropower peaking facilities: the Bighorn on the mainstem of the NSR, which forms Abraham Lake and the Brazeau Reservoir on the Brazeau River. Land uses in the watershed include agriculture, resource exploration and extraction, forestry, recreation, urban centers and country residential development. The largest urban area is the Capital...

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Synthesis of recent knowledge on water quality, sediment quality and non-fish biota in the North Saskatchewan River with special emphasis on the Industrial Heartland-Capital Region Water Management Framework reach

Description

The main objective of this report is to provide a succinct overview of the technical studies conducted in support of the Water Management Framework for the Industrial Heartland-Capital Region... More ≫

Description

The main objective of this report is to provide a succinct overview of the technical studies conducted in support of the Water Management Framework for the Industrial Heartland-Capital Region (IH-CR). The IH-CR supports a population of over one million people and a large segment of Alberta’s resource processing heavy industry, and the region is expected to continue to experience industrial and population growth. Unless this growth is managed carefully, cumulative impacts on the river from point and non-point source loading of contaminants could lead to the deterioration of water quality and aquatic ecosystem health. The Water Management Framework for the IH-CR focuses on the management of current and future municipal and industrial impacts.

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A review of literature on cohesive sediment transport processes, methodological frameworks and management strategies in relation to the North Saskatchewan River

Description

The work presented herein comprises a phase 1 study to provide an assessment of the current state of knowledge regarding the nature of sediment inputs, transport and contaminant relationships in... More ≫

Description

The work presented herein comprises a phase 1 study to provide an assessment of the current state of knowledge regarding the nature of sediment inputs, transport and contaminant relationships in rivers with the intention of using this review to outline a scope and methodology to address key knowledge gaps. Such information is necessary to develop strategic and cost-effective monitoring programs for management of the North Saskatchewan watershed. Specific objectives of this study are to review and compile current knowledge regarding: 1) the nature, source, transport and fate of cohesive sediment and associated contaminants in rivers; 2) the effect of land-use change on the source and fate of sediment-associated contaminants; 3) as assessment of frameworks and methodologies used to evaluate the provenance and fate of sediments in river environments and; 4) make recommendations for future work to evaluate the provenance, transport, fate and effect of cohesive sediment on the NSR.

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Alberta surface water quality index, April 1996 - March 2010

Description

Presents graphs and summaries of the Alberta Surface Water Quality Index from April 1996 to 2010 for the Smoky, Peace, Red Deer, Athabasca, Bow, North Saskatchewan, and Oldman rivers.

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Public assurance monitoring - snow, soil and water sampling Peace River Three Creeks area

Description

Growing public concern about the possibility of hydrocarbon deposition contaminating local and regional soils and surface waters in the Peace River Three Creeks area led Alberta Environment to... More ≫

Description

Growing public concern about the possibility of hydrocarbon deposition contaminating local and regional soils and surface waters in the Peace River Three Creeks area led Alberta Environment to undertake a preliminary sampling initiative that incorporated snow, surface water and soil sampling to determine whether there is evidence of contamination from the oil and gas industry to the surrounding environment.

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Bow River BioSonics pilot survey with water quality ground-truth monitoring

Description

This study was initialized to test and validate an innovative survey technique adopting the BioSonics DT-X echosounder, which has been successfully applied for surveying vegetation and sediment in... More ≫

Description

This study was initialized to test and validate an innovative survey technique adopting the BioSonics DT-X echosounder, which has been successfully applied for surveying vegetation and sediment in many estuary and lake systems, but not for a shallow riverine system, like the Bow River in Alberta, Canada. The site for this study was selected to be a 500 meter reach on the Bow River just below the City of Calgary’s major wastewater treatment plant, the Bonnybrook Plant, where substantial levels of aquatic vegetation exist during summer. The BioSonics survey was performed three times under different growing seasons in 2010.

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