Publications

Alberta Tier 2 soil and groundwater remediation guidelines

Description

Alberta's framework for the management of contaminated sites is designed to achieve three policy outcomes: pollution prevention, health protection, and productive use. Under this framework, three... More ≫

Description

Alberta's framework for the management of contaminated sites is designed to achieve three policy outcomes: pollution prevention, health protection, and productive use. Under this framework, three management options are provided: Tier 1, Tier 2, and Exposure Control. Under Tier 2 it may be possible to screen out certain exposure pathways and/or modify the Tier 1 guidelines on the basis of site conditions. This companion document describes how the Tier 2 approach might be used to develop remediation objectives for a site.

Tags

Addendum to water quality trends in irrigation water of southern Alberta

Description

The technical report summarizes temporal trends occurring for select water quality parameters within a 15-year dataset of water quality information collected during the Irrigation District Water... More ≫

Description

The technical report summarizes temporal trends occurring for select water quality parameters within a 15-year dataset of water quality information collected during the Irrigation District Water Quality program. Temporal trends at the regional and sample site scale were conducted to determine overall change in water quality parameters and identify possible areas of concern. This information is critical for enabling the agriculture and irrigation sectors to be proactive in addressing environmental concerns, food safety and demonstrating stewardship of Alberta’s land and water resources.

Tags

Looking upstream : a 5-year review of Alberta’s monitoring, evaluation, and reporting (MER) plan for lotic systems

Description

This report provides a summary of activities conducted between 2016 and 2021 under A Five-Year Provincial Water Quality Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting Plan for Lotic Systems (Kerr and Cooke... More ≫

Description

This report provides a summary of activities conducted between 2016 and 2021 under A Five-Year Provincial Water Quality Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting Plan for Lotic Systems (Kerr and Cooke 2019). An overview of this first river water quality monitoring, evaluation and reporting plan is provided, along with an evaluation of key metrics of the program, including sampling details, parameters monitored, and quality assurance/quality control efforts. The report presents summary findings and identifies ongoing gaps related to scientific questions. Key issues and improvements are recommended for consideration in the development of the next monitoring, evaluation and reporting plan.

Tags

The WaterSHED monitoring program : technical progress report 2018-2021

Description

This is the second technical report from the multistakeholder WaterSHED water quality monitoring program of North Saskatchewan River Basin tributaries. The report includes a summary of program... More ≫

Description

This is the second technical report from the multistakeholder WaterSHED water quality monitoring program of North Saskatchewan River Basin tributaries. The report includes a summary of program operation, results from water quality sampling and flow monitoring, assessments of water quality relative to surface water quality guidelines, and quantification of mass export of several water quality parameters from tributaries across the basin. The report concludes with a review of program learnings realized during operation of the WaterSHED monitoring program and descriptions of ongoing and future work.

Tags

Alberta Environment and Protected Areas Indigenous Lake monitoring program evaluation report

Description

The Indigenous Lake Monitoring Program (ILMP) was developed in response to Indigenous communities’ concerns about the quality of lakes of local importance as well as the Community-Based Monitoring... More ≫

Description

The Indigenous Lake Monitoring Program (ILMP) was developed in response to Indigenous communities’ concerns about the quality of lakes of local importance as well as the Community-Based Monitoring & Knowledge teams’ mandate to explore opportunities to work together with Indigenous communities to advance environmental stewardship. The ILMP aims to support and enable stewardship and management of Alberta’s lakes based on the best available Indigenous and scientific knowledge. From 2016-21, staff from CBM&K, Watershed Sciences and Watershed Monitoring units within the Airshed & Watershed Stewardship Branch worked with community technicians from four First Nations (Bigstone Cree Nation, Cold Lake First Nations, Whitefish Lake First Nation, Dene Tha' First Nation) to collect and report on water chemistry, physical measurements, and biological samples on seven lakes in Northern Alberta. The ILMP Evaluation Report summarizes the findings of an independent evaluation of the ILMP...

Tags

Veterinary pharmaceutical analysis of irrigation water of southern Alberta

Description

This report provides information on the prevalence of veterinary pharmaceutical and synthetic growth hormone residues in irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts, as part of the... More ≫

Description

This report provides information on the prevalence of veterinary pharmaceutical and synthetic growth hormone residues in irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts, as part of the 10-year Irrigation District Water Quality project. The frequency of detection, concentration, potential toxicity and contribution to antimicrobial resistance of non-target species are detailed. This information is used by the agriculture and irrigation industry to be proactive in addressing environmental concerns and management of Alberta's land and water resources.

Tags

Evaluation of quality control data from Alberta’s lotic water monitoring programs : 2016-2019

Description

This report investigates the bias and variability of data generated from the Long Term River Network (LTRN) and Tributary Monitoring Network (TMN) programs. In total, 323 field blank samples and... More ≫

Description

This report investigates the bias and variability of data generated from the Long Term River Network (LTRN) and Tributary Monitoring Network (TMN) programs. In total, 323 field blank samples and 318 duplicate samples were taken from nearly 100 stations across the province of Alberta. Data analyses relate these QC samples to 4,482 provincial LTRN and TMN environmental samples taken between January 2016 and December 2019. There was a wide range of potential contamination (i.e. bias) and variability evident in the parameters monitored in the TMN and LTRN programs. Data end-users should be cognizant of this potential bias and variability in data generated by the LTRN and TMN programs. Parameters with low environmental concentrations, elevated potential for extraneous contamination and/or high variability should be interpreted with caution.

Tags

Summary report Alberta Phosphorus Watershed Project : 2018–2020 supplement

Description

Research has shown that in Alberta, the amount of phosphorus in streams increases with agricultural intensity in watersheds. The goal of the Alberta Phosphorus Watershed Project was to determine... More ≫

Description

Research has shown that in Alberta, the amount of phosphorus in streams increases with agricultural intensity in watersheds. The goal of the Alberta Phosphorus Watershed Project was to determine if wide-spread adoption of environmental beneficial management practices would improve water quality at the watershed scale, as well as to develop the Alberta Phosphorus Management Tool. This report supplements the previously published 2013–2017 Alberta Phosphorus Watershed Project progress report by summarizing the results and progress of the Alberta Phosphorus Watershed Project from 2018–2020.

Tags

Long-term patterns of pesticides in irrigation water of southern Alberta

Description

A 10-year study was conducted to assess the quality of irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts. This report is one of a series of reports based on data collected from this study... More ≫

Description

A 10-year study was conducted to assess the quality of irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts. This report is one of a series of reports based on data collected from this study entitled the Irrigation District Water Quality project. The focus of this report is to examine the long-term patterns of pesticide presence in irrigation water of southern Alberta.

Tags

Water quality trends in irrigation water of southern Alberta

Description

A 10-year study was conducted to assess the quality of irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts. This report is one of a series of reports based on data collected from this study... More ≫

Description

A 10-year study was conducted to assess the quality of irrigation water within Alberta's irrigation districts. This report is one of a series of reports based on data collected from this study entitled the Irrigation District Water Quality project. The focus of this report is to examine whether water quality trends are present in irrigation water of southern Alberta.

Tags