Water security enhanced by improvements to reservoir infrastructure

By Cal Braid
Taber Times
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

 On Feb. 18, Alberta’s government released a surprisingly good report about moisture levels throughout the province. It reported that after several dry years and El Niño producing warm and dry winters across Canada, “early findings in 2026 are showing Alberta’s precipitation levels are bringing back needed moisture across all corners of the province.”

  It said the majority of the mountain snowpack sites surveyed showed levels above or well-above normal. “After three consecutive years of low early-season water supply forecasts, current conditions are the most favourable observed since early 2022,” the government media release said.

  Taber-Warner MLA Grant Hunter, who was sworn in as minister of environment and protected areas in early-2026 said, “This is great news for our farmers, businesses, communities, and all Albertans who use and rely on water each and every day. We will continue closely monitoring our supply over the coming months and keep working to help build a more drought-resilient province.”

  Agriculture minister RJ Sigurdson added, “I’m optimistic that early moisture indicators paint a positive picture for the 2026 growing season.”

  In southern Alberta, the Milk River basin was forecasted to see normal river volumes, while the Bow and Oldman River basins were forecasted to see river volumes ranging from normal to above normal.

  It’s a surprising forecast given the unusually dry and warm winter in the Oldman basin.

  Water storage levels in major reservoirs showed normal levels in the Oldman and South Saskatchewan River basins and above normal in the Bow River basin.

  Drought stages in Alberta are defined in ranges from Stage 0 (no drought conditions) to Stage 5 (severe drought conditions). The drought stages for major river basins were last updated on Jan. 31 and the Milk River basin, Oldman River basin, South Saskatchewan River basin, Bow River basin were all grouped as Stage 2.

  On Feb. 27, the St. Mary River Irrigation District (SMRID) sent a water supply update to irrigators and said current storage levels within the District’s reservoirs are at 246,000 acre-feet, which represents 80 per cent of the full supply level (FSL).

  “The Headworks reservoirs, comprised of the Waterton, St. Mary and Milk River Ridge reservoirs, are sitting at a combined storage of 338,000 acre-feet, or 70 per cent of the FSL. The current total of all of the storage in the St. Mary Project reservoirs is 584,000 acre-feet or 73 per cent of FSL,” SMRID GM David Westwood told irrigators.

  SMRID’s report differed from the Province’s in that two of its three snow pillow depths at Akamina, Flat Top and Many Glacier – the mountaintops that feed the St. Mary system – are below the lower quartile in terms of historical depths.

  However, on the same day, Westwood clarified the District’s situation saying, “Right now,  Flat Top Mountain is reporting snow water equivalent (SWE) between the lower and upper quartiles. Flat Top Mountain is the largest contributor to our water supply. While the snowpack at Akamina and Many Glacier are both currently below the lower quartile, reservoirs within the St. Mary Project (Headworks and SMRID) have captured a significant amount of water over the winter.”

  He continued, “Strategic investment in reservoir infrastructure since the 1950’s has allowed Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation and SMRID to capture and retain an additional 130,000 acre-feet of water over the winter, despite less-than-ideal snowpack conditions for the SMRID. So, while the warmer winter weather this winter has resulted in a reduced snowpack overall, off-stream storage has been crucial to capture this runoff and strengthen water security for water users in what may be a suboptimal supply year for the southern tributaries.”

  While the Province was sweepingly optimistic in its portrayal of the water situation, the facts from local regional authorities confirm that the optimism is valid.