After three years of consultation and negotiation, the Alberta Water Council has submitted to the Government of Alberta its recommendations for Alberta's new wetland policy and implementation plan. This policy, once accepted by Alberta's government, will be a first for Alberta. In contrast to current wetland policy, which applies only to the "white" or settled areas of the province, the new policy will guide decisions on wetland destruction and wetland protection over the entire province, including the oil sands region.

Although not all members of the Alberta Water Council (a mutli-stakeholder team representing multiple sectors) fully approved the wetland policy and implementation plan recommendations, the Alberta Water Council forwarded all pertinent documents to the Minister of Environment Ron Renner on September 16 for review. The package included the non-consensus letters from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and Alberta Chamber of Resources, the response letter from the environmental non-governmental organization members, and the policy recommendations . A government response is anticipated in the next six months.

To see Alberta Water Council's recommendations, visit www.AWChome.ca

While Alberta has already lost over 60% of its wetlands — primarily in the settled areas of Alberta where agricultural practices and urban development have drained wetlands — up to 22,786.4 hectares could be lost to proposed oil sands mining projects if the government does not act quickly to approve and implement the policy recommendations.

Albertans have waited long enough for a wetlands policy, losing wetlands over the last 3 years while the Alberta Water Council deliberated a new policy. Swift action by the government to approve and implement the policy is crucial to protect 22,786.4 hectares of wetlands that could be affected by approvals of proposed mining project in the oil sands region in northeastern Alberta. Other mining projects not yet disclosed could increase this amount of affected wetlands. Not only oil sands mining projects but in situ oil sands projects (of which there are many proposed) also damage wetlands. Current reclamation regulations result in significant net losses of wetlands in the oil sands region. The policy will be instrumental in protecting thousands of more hectares of wetlands in the future.

Delaying the approval of this policy, or worse weakening the protection measures within the policy due to industry outcry, will result in more wetlands lost and weaken Alberta's environmental reputation.

What does the policy propose?

These recommendations are one of most concrete deliverables under Alberta's 2003 water strategy, Water for Life, and have the potential to do much towards the goal of healthy aquatic ecosystems. Wetlands are an essential component of Alberta's water systems. Wetlands store water over dry periods, mitigate flooding, filter water to improve its quality, act as an important conduit between surface and groundwater, and provide essential habitat for migratory and non-migratory waterfowl.

The wetland policy will aim to maintain existing wetlands for their ecological, social, and economic benefits for Albertans. It will apply to all natural wetlands that the Canadian Wetland Classification System identifies, including fens, bogs, swamps, marshes, and shallow open water. In addition to permanent wetlands and lakes, the policy will also apply to ephemeral, temporary, and semi-permanent water bodies. The policy will apply to restored natural wetlands and wetlands constructed and enhanced for the purposes of wetland mitigation. Decision makers will use area of wetland as a proxy for function and value to maintain wetland benefits.

The policy recommendations propose five strategic directions:

1. Manage impacts to wetlands, primarily through the Wetland Mitigation Decision Framework. The Framework, empowered by the Water Act, will require the regulator (Alberta Environment) and the project development proponent to first avoid wetland loss and degradation, second minimize disturbance where full avoidance is not possible, and compensate for wetland loss as a last resort using science-based actions consistent with watershed objectives.
2. Set wetland objectives in watershed plans and integrate them in policy and planning.
3. Encourage voluntary stewardship through education and similar initiatives to increase wetland area in the province.
4. Build Albertans' knowledge and capacity through partnerships, coordination, inter-sectoral cooperation, infrastructure, and financial and human capacity.
5. Protect wetlands of exceptional value through a process, criteria, and tools to identify and protect wetlands that are significant locally, regionally, provincially, and internationally.

While there were concessions on the part of many of the Alberta Water Council members who negotiated the policy recommendations, the recommended policy and implementation plan represent a significant step forward for wetland protection in Alberta. Swift government action to approve and implement the policy is necessary to fulfill its promise.