Provincial water talks get off to turbulent start

The North Saskatchewan River near downtown Edmonton. 

Photograph by: Larry Wong , edmontonjournal.com

Provincial water talks get off to turbulent start

Calgary Herald February 14, 2013

Conservation groups say a survey on water doesn’t give Albertans a meaningful opportunity to participate in policy discussions.

Earlier this month, Alberta Environment announced it would spend $1 million on provincewide consultations that will guide how water is used in Alberta for the next 50 years.

It suggested the opinions gathered through public forums will be used to design a new water strategy.

On Wednesday, several groups working on water issues in the province said the online survey attached to the water talks is “so vague as to be almost meaningless.”

It asks questions such as whether people support making it easier to share water with other users.

“This ridiculous survey will only serve to muddy the waters,” Bill Moore-Kilgannon, executive director of Public Interest Alberta, one of the five groups raising concerns about the survey, said in a news release Tuesday.

Others include the Council of Canadians, Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, Keepers of the Athabasca and Water Matters Society of Alberta.

The survey is available online, while the water talks begin Tuesday in Grande Prairie and Medicine Hat. The consultations will continue for the next month in cities and towns across the province of Alberta — including Okotoks on Feb. 27, Calgary on March 20 and Canmore on March 21.

Intro to Survey here: http://bit.ly/YU2uOH