September 27 & 28 at the Lakedell Hall near Pigeon Lake. 

The agenda includes:

Keynote from Chris Teichreb, Central AB Limnologist "From Monitoring to Management, Working Towards Maintaining and Improving Water Quality"

 

By Jay White, ALMS Past President

The Province of Alberta has been operating under a draft wetland policy for the white zone (the lower third of the Province) for the past 20 years since draft policy was created for white zone wetlands and a discussion paper created for green zone wetlands. Many of us have been patiently waiting for a comprehensive policy that addresses all of the wetlands in Alberta, and on September 10 our wish was granted by Environment Minister Diana McQueen.

 

The biggest bombshell in the new comprehensive policy is the removal of the no-net loss provisions and philosophy contained within the previous draft policy. The current policy simply does not allow for an increase in wetland area in the province, nor does it address past losses. The removal is essentially an admission of our failure as a Province to even come close to meeting the objectives of no net loss. And, with losses of up to 70% of our white zone (prairie pothole) wetlands in the south, over 300,000 hectares of wetlands in the oil sands and over 90% loss of wetlands in major urban centres, it is hard to argue with trying to continue to giving lip service to no net loss principles.

Mitigation of negative impacts also includes a hierarchy of actions to guide wetland management.

With the removal of no-net loss and the area-based approach comes a new approach of protecting wetland function. We will no longer be replacing wetlands on a 3:1 basis for restoration, instead we will replace wetlands on a sliding scale from 8 - 0.125 : 1 based on functionality. However, after many years of funding, researchers from the University of Alberta and University of Western Ontario have not landed on any sort of meaningful measurement for wetland functionality. The current policy now must have this figured out and operational by August 2014 - less than one year from now. There is some hope for a functional tool being piloted in the South Saskatchewan basin by an American researcher, but it is currently limited to marsh type wetlands in the southern part of the Province. A functional tool for peatlands is completely lacking, and that will need to be created and in place by August 2015.  As well, only "permanent" wetland losses need to be compensated for-which will need to be established during the Approval process. For example, a 25-year operating wellsite will not require compensation if it is scheduled to be reclaimed following completion.   

 

This current policy still leaves the department with little meaningful mechanisms to say "no" to developments that occur on sensitive or high-value wetlands either by denying Approvals or making compensation economically unfeasible. Such an approach backfired in the City of Calgary where developers were happy to pay for actual land values as part of City's private compensation program, leaving administration with millions of dollars to spend on restoration, but no lands to do it on.

 

There is still hope that public pressure on the government along with constructive criticism received by Albertans will help strengthen the implementation of the new Wetland Policy. How a policy is implemented is often far more important than the ideas within it.

 

Other thoughtful reviews of this policy have been released by several other environmental groups. I encourage people to learn more about the implications of this new wetland policy.
 

Download the document on the Water For Life website:  Alberta Wetland Policy.

This summer the Alberta Water Council released its recommendations to improve non-point source pollution management in Alberta. Of particular interest to lake management, this report is the first of its kind to use a multi-stakeholder, watershed-based approach to develop provincial policy recommendations for addressing non-point source pollution. The report makes specific recommendations that reflect the need for knowledge and tools to determine:

• How much non-point source pollution there is (quantification)
• Where it is coming from (research)
• If it is a problem (evaluation)
• What we can do about it (mitigation) 

Download the report here: Recommendations to Improve Non-Point Source Pollution Management in Alberta (pdf)

 

The Alberta Lake Management Society is now an official partner of in the Living Lakes Canada Network and, as such, has been recognized for our efforts to promote conservation of lakes in Alberta. We are looking forward to working with all of the partners in the network to continue to advance protection of freshwater ecosystems in Alberta and across Canada. Learn more...

Chilly Waters: 2013 WPAC Summit

 

This event is open to everyone. Topic areas include:

• Groundwater science and management
• Land/air interactions with surface water
• Stewardship in the basin
• Policy and planning tools

There will also be a full day of tours around the region, highlighting some key features:

• Cold Lake Fish Hatchery
• Industrial Development in the Watershed (Husky Oil)
• Historical Perspectives on the Watershed (Beaver and Sand River confluence)
• Wildfire management and effects in the boreal forest (Dupre fire site)
• Park management and FireSmart planning (Moose Lake Provincial Park)

Registration Form

 

Draft Agenda

 

For inquiries about the Chilly Waters Summit, please contact the BRWA at hk.brwa@lica.ca or (780) 812-2182. We look forward to seeing you in September!

Get more information and provide your feedback on removing Part 3 on faecal coliforms at Public Beaches from the regulation.

(open until Sept 18 only)