1. In Situ oil sands – get ready for massive water demands in northern and central Alberta

2. Working with local Communities — community engagement for watershed protection

3. Upper Bow Basin study points to need for serious land-use choices

4. Why municipal elections matter

5. “Remarkable Beyond Borders” conference will explore policies of place

In Situ oil sands – get ready for massive water demands in northern and central Alberta

When most people think about oil sands development, images of vast open-pit mining operations and huge tailings ponds come to mind. However, only 18% of Alberta's oil sands deposits are shallow enough to mine from the surface. Of the 91 active oil sands projects in Alberta, five are mining projects and 86 are in situ projects. The large majority of oil sands in Alberta must be developed in place via extraction wells, and this is referred to as "in situ" (meaning "in place") oil sands development. Water in in situ operations is converted to steam to heat and help "liquefy" deep bitumen bound in porous sedimentary deposits, so it can be pumped to the surface. Once it is at the surface, water is again used, as in surface mining, to process or upgrade bitumen into synthetic crude oil (SCO), which can be pumped via pipeline to distant plants for further processing into a variety of fuels and other petroleum products. As in situ operations roll out over approximately 140,000 square kilometers that contain oil sands deposits in northern and central Alberta, water use will continue to increase dramatically bitumen extraction.

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Working with local Communities — community engagement for watershed protection

As part of its 10-year, $50-million commitment to watershed conservation and increased access to safe water, the RBC Foundation (Royal Bank of Canada) recently awarded Water Matters a 2010 RBC Blue Water Project Leadership Grant in the amount of $100,000 to support the work of grassroots watershed stewardship groups in Alberta.

The Partnering to Promote Local Stewardship Program will specifically help local watershed stewardship groups and municipalities promote community land-use practices that protect local water supplies.

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Upper Bow Basin study points to need for serious land-use choices

The most populated watershed in southern Alberta is under pressure, and we need to make the right choices about handling land use in the Bow River Basin if we are to continue to enjoy the same quality of life. These are, in part, the findings of Phase 1 of The Upper Bow Basin Cumulative Effects Study (UBBCES), a landmark GIS study detailing the physical footprint of the upper Bow Watershed.

A working group that included Brad Stelfox of the ALCES GROUP, the Alberta Wilderness Association, the Bow River Basin Council, and several other researchers, industry leaders, and environmental non-governmental organizations, hatched the idea for the UBBCES in 2007. Water Matters' board member Eric Lloyd has been a key facilitator of the study from its inception.

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Why municipal elections matter

Municipal elections might be the last thing on your mind this October, but they are important because the right aldermen, councillors, and mayors will help ensure you have safe clean water. Across Alberta on October 18, 2010, prospective candidates will vie for your vote. You have the right to ask your candidates how they rank water as a priority, and what actions they will take if elected.

Regardless of whom you elect, how municipalities access and treat water will determine the price you may be paying when you turn on your tap. As mentioned in previous Water Log articles, Alberta is reviewing how water is licensed, allocated, and transferred. One part of this Water Allocation Management System Review includes a section on how water rights are transferred, which is often referred to as "the water market." This will affect both the access to and the price of water.

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“Remarkable Beyond Borders” conference will explore policies of place

The 7-million-hectare Crown of the Continent is a rare and special place — an ecological crossroads where plant and animal communities from the Pacific Northwest, eastern prairies, southern Rockies, and boreal forests mingle. This spine of glacier-carved mountains is also the headwaters for North America, where pristine rivers originate and flow to the Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Hudson Bay.

This region — which includes the landscapes of southwestern Alberta, southeastern British Columbia and northern Montana — is the focus of an upcoming conference "Remarkable Beyond Borders: Shaping the Future of the Crown of the Continent." For two days in September, a diverse gathering in Waterton Lakes National Park will explore the past, present, and future of the Crown of the Continent. Convened by the University of Montana's Center for Natural Resources and Environmental Policy on September 23-24, 2010, the conference features keynote speakers Jack Nesbit (author of Sources of the River: Tracking David Thompson Across Western North America), Jonathan B. Tourtellot (director and geotourism editor, National Geographic Traveler), Darrell Kipp (director, Piegan Institute), Lynn Scarlett (former U.S. deputy secretary of the interior), and the Hon. Jim Prentice (Canada's Minister of Environment; invited).

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