LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Putting a price on water is controversial in the semi-arid region of southern Alberta where the resource is almost priceless.
With a new water protection act tabled in the legislature in November, sharing the resource may become easier, if the bill contains the proper guarantees to make sure everybody gets enough in times of shortage.
Water sharing agreements have always put people’s needs first. Only in the last decade have other needs been considered, said Dave Schellenberger, assistant deputy minister of Alberta Environment.
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“When there is a shortage, humankind comes first,” said Schellenberger.
At this year’s Alberta Irrigation Projects Association annual meeting in Lethbridge, farmers were told the province’s water supply is facing more pressure to meet demands from agriculture, petrochemical companies and the pulp and paper industry.
In addition, Alberta could have another 700,000 people within 25 years and the province must plan to meet the population’s demands.
Lawyer Keith Wilson of the McLennan and Ross firm in Edmonton said transfers of water rights are allowed under the new act, but more flexibility needs to be written into the act before it becomes law next spring.
The act has been in the proposal stage for five years.
Wilson said the law requires a clearer review and approval process that reduces uncertainty among those claiming a right to water.
His research into the American water sharing experience showed when legal and other costs are high, it prevents water transfers to those who need it.
One suggestion from Wilson is the American concept of a water bank, which acts as a broker between a water seller and buyer.
The bank lists available water and interested users may bid on it. The bank charges an administration fee to link the users together and collects the bid.
“Some states are moving quickly into this water bank concept,” said Wilson.
Idaho has had a water banking system since 1979, Colorado and California introduced it in the early 1990s. Some banks operate on a state-wide basis.
