Watersheds sustain human life by providing the ecological systems, food systems and water supplies on which we depend. In Canada, the principles of watershed management have long been known and advocated. The development of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration in the 1930s and creation of Conservation Authorities in Ontario in the late 1940s heralded the beginning of practical work to restore damaged watersheds through soil, water and forestry conservation practices, and the creation of local authorities to lead the work. In Alberta we now have the opportunity to apply watershed management principles to our large river basins and build upon the long provincial history of water resources engineering and pollution control achievements. In time, watershed management will ensure the comprehensive protection of our water supplies through the integration of land conservation principles, across various sectors, with the current regulations and policies applied to water resources management.
This Integrated Watershed Management Plan (IWMP) lays out recommendations and an approach to manage the North Saskatchewan River (NSR) Watershed, sustain water resources for the long-term and meet the three strategic goals of Water for Life: Alberta’s Strategy for Sustainability (2003). This plan serves as advice to the Government of Alberta and all watershed stakeholders to guide future decision making in their respective areas of responsibility and interest. It identifies specific actions that should be implemented, describes the roles and responsibilities of the various players to do so, and presents an implementation strategy based on both voluntary and statutory activities.