We are all upstream of somebody else.  
 
Conference Announcement (pdf) 
 
FEBRUARY 10 - 12, 2009, The Executive Royal Inn, Leduc AB.
 
NSWA and Partners FOR the Saskatchewan River Basin (PFRSB) hosted a conference introducing the State of the Saskatchewan River Basin Report and featuring a one-day municipal forum on water issues.The Saskatchewan River Basin covers over 400,000 km2, an area larger than the country of Germany. The North Saskatchewan, Red Deer, Oldman, Bow, and Battle Rivers all feed the Saskatchewan River, which ultimately ends in Lake Winnipeg. When addressing watershed issues and concerns, there are many groups to engage such as federal, provincial, municipal, industrial, and local stakeholders. Watershed management is about forging collaborative relationships. It’s about learning new ways to communicate. Watershed management is about understanding relevant science. How do we do all this? We have some ideas and we know you have some too. Let’s put them together.
 
Conference Proceedings
Hosted by the Partners FOR the Saskatchewan River Basin and the North Saskatchewan River Watershed Alliance this conference provided an opportunity to learn about the State of the Saskatchewan River Basin, current science and research going on in the basin, address issues in shared governance, oil and gas, municipal waste water, as well as engage rural stakeholders in watershed planning.
TOPICS COVERED

• State of the Saskatchewan River Basin
• Communications within Collaborative Planning
• Integrated Watershed Management Planning
• Industrial Water Usage
• Current Watershed Science & Research
• Engaging Rural Stakeholders in Watershed Planning

Held February 11-12, 2009 at the Executive Royal Inn, Nisku, Alberta.
Attendance: ~150 participants.

For the full conference website, including the agenda, pleases click here.
 
PRESENTATIONS

These presentations are presented in the same order as they appeared on the agenda. They are all powerpoint, available here as PDF files. PDF files consider each slide as a single page. Please consider the environment before printing. Unless otherwise specified, speakers notes have not been included with the presentations. If you have any questions, please contact us. Bulletins and newsletters distilling the technical information will be published and sent out soon. Thanks again to all our presenters!

Speaker
Presentation
Synopsis
Format

Robert Halliday, R.Halliday and Associates
and Sheldon McLeod, SL McLeod Consulting

State of the Saskatchewan River Basin Report

A comprehensive State of the Watershed Report for the entire Saskatchewan Basin, from the headwaters in Alberta to Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba. This report covers water quality, water quantity, management and planning, vulnerabilities, licensed water use and consumption, in-stream flow needs, dams, diversions, municipal use, natural hazards, invasive species, climate change, and development.  [42 slides]

 PDF (26.22 MB)

Tracy Scott, Ducks Unlimited

State of the North Saskatchewan River Basin Report (2005): Lessons Learned and Application to Watershed Planning
 

One of the founding members of NSWA, Tracy’s presentation begins with a brief history of the organization and how we tackled building stakeholder understanding of the watershed approach. The State of the Watershed (referred to as SOW in the presentation), was published in 2005, but its relevance as a source of data, as an education and awareness tool, and as a guiding document for collaboration is crucial as we move into the next planning phase. Speaker notes included. [33 slides]

 PDF (1.17 MB)

Dr. Michael Sullivan, University of Alberta
Development of a Cumulative Effects Assessment Tool (ALCES) for the North Saskatchewan River Watershed

Starting with a natural history of river fishes, Mike quickly demonstrates that fish don't only use the river. He then uses the question "How much money would it take for you to move to downtown Toronto?" to set up cumulative effects modeling. Real world case studies are also used to outline how modeling will help stakeholders select best practices for management. [75 slides]

 PDF (10.12 MB)

Kevin Gagne, Alberta Sustainable Resource Development
R11 Forest Management Plan for the Headwaters of the North Saskatchewan River

The headwaters of the North Saskatchewan River lie within the boundary of forest management sector R11. Kevin explains how the protection of forests actually created over-mature forests, leading to a high threat of severe forest fires. In order to create a management plan, the R11 managers held a ground-breaking stakeholder meeting, called a charette, the results of which allowed for a balance between fire risk, recreation, and conservation. [51 slides]

PPS (30 MB)

Graham Watt, North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance
The New Vermilion River Watershed Management Project: Goals, Issues and Process
NSWA is working with the North East Alberta Water Management Coalition, the Alberta North America Waterfowl Management Plan Partnership, and other stakeholders to prepare a watershed management plan for the Vermilion River sub-watershed. Graham describes the planning process and provides some highlights from initial watershed assessment and modeling.
 PDF (5 MB)

Mike Seneka, Alberta Environment
An Update on the Hydrology of the North Saskatchewan River Watershed in Alberta: Current Supplies and Long-term Trends
Mike provides a historical overview of river flows, comparing historical data to natural and mean annual flows. Considering the impacts of the structures at Lake Abraham and Brazeau, Mike discusses the demands, consumption, and instream flow needs. He also introduces the green-yellow-red in-stream flow needs warning system seen in the Lower Athabasca river. [27 slides]

 PDF (1.73 MB)

Darcy McDonald, Alberta Environment
Development of a New Water Quality Model for the North Saskatchewan River Watershed in Alberta

A technical report, Darcy's presentation explains the need for a water quality model in the North Saskatchewan River, especially in the context of the Industrial Heartland. He examines the details of building a model, addressing information gathering, monitoring issues, products and challenges. He also provides numerous graphs and charts. [31 slides]

 PDF (1.40 MB)

Morris Maccagno, WorleyParsons Infrastructure and Environment

A Hydrogeological Assessment of the North Saskatchewan River Watershed: Current Groundwater Supplies and Issues

Morris delivers a brief historical overview of how society has arrived at the position we are at today, in terms of ideas of sustainability and integrated watershed management. Only two weeks in to the groundwater study, Morris discusses the approach and deliverables of the project. [26 slides]

 PDF (1.16 MB)

Dr. Lyndon Gyurek, City of Edmonton

Measuring the City of Edmonton's Loadings to the Watershed
 

Lyndon provides a background on how the City of Edmonton contributes water to the NSR (called loadings). He then explains how the loadings are regulated, and introduces the Total Loadings River Impact study. Beginning with Approval-to-Operate Milestones, Lyndon then moves into the Total Loadings Framework and discussion of the Stormwater Quality Strategy, Integrated Stormwater Management, and Low Impact Development (LID) tools. [29 slides]

 PDF (1.50 MB)

Mark Anielski, Anielski Management Inc.
 Measuring the Genuine Wealth of the Saskatchewan River Basin
 
 

Sharon Reedyk, Chair of North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance's Integrated Watershed Management Plan Steering Committee

An Update on the Development of the Integrated Watershed Management Plan for the North Saskatchewan River Basin

Sharon provides an overview of the history of the NSWA and the Integrated Watershed Management Planning process. She outlines the challenges and opportunities, including task plans, knowledge gap priorities, future watershed pressures, and goals. She also introduces the draft Table of Contents for the plan. [33 slides]

 PDF (1.45 MB)

Dr. Laurie Danielson, Northeast Capital Industrial Association
Overview of Development and Activity in the Industrial Heartland

Dr. Danielson provides an overview of NCIA, including the vision and mandate. He then provides an update on activity in the Industrial Heartland, including those projects that are pending or have been withdrawn due to the current economic climate.[18 slides]

 PDF (254.82 KB)

John Taggart, Alberta Environment
An Overview and Update on Alberta Environment's Water Management Framework for the Industrial Heartland

John outlines the desire for a water management framework specific to the Industrial Heartland and the Capital Region. He demonstrates the principles and the future vision of the framework. He also explains the conceptual network, three phases, timeline, and implementation of the framework. [25 slides]

 PDF (397.25 KB)

John Thompson, AMEC
Water Use and Demand in the North Saskatchewan River Basin

John outlines the details behind the Water Use and Demand Report, examining the study objectives, water use concepts, the methodology behind the study, and key findings. He then examines how close the North Saskatchewan watershed is to being fully allocated, and the implications and challenges of managing a resource without a dollar value. [36 slides]

 PDF (1.14 MB)

Dr. Mary Griffiths, Pembina Institute
Climate Change, Energy and the North Saskatchewan River

Mary discusses the impacts of climate change on Alberta, in terms of both temperature and water concerns. Bringing it down to specifics for the North Saskatchewan River basin, her presentation looks at overall water use for energy production, as well as the potential impacts of upgrading in the Industrial Heartland on water demand. Graphs and charts tie together much of the information presented by our other speakers. [33 slides]

 PDF (883.97 KB)