The South East Alberta Watershed Alliance (SEAWA) brings together diverse partners to educate the public, to support knowledge development, and to develop and facilitate the implementation of management plans for the sustainable use of the South Saskatchewan River Sub-Basin and the Pakowki Lake watershed.

The South Saskatchewan River is the drinking water source for the City of Medicine Hat and the Town of Redcliff, and is over-allocated and the daily discharge of the river is on a declining trend. With a projected increase in population, agricultural expansion, and therefore real estate development, and extreme weather events due to climate change, the watershed requires enhanced water management strategies for both water quality and quantity.

The information gathered in this study informs the development of a source water protection plan in collaboration with the City of Medicine Hat, the Town of Redcliff, and with upstream municipalities such as the cities of Calgary and Lethbridge. It serves as a comprehensive decision-making tool to assist planners, developers, landowners, and consumers in determining what levels of development are supportable on the land. Public and stakeholder forums will be held between fall 2023 until spring 2027 – the anticipated completion of the source water protection plan.

This project was funded in 2022 through the Foundation’s Development Grant Program to support sustainable planning and land use management of real property in Alberta.