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Latest news about the Safe Drinking Water Team
The Water Security Agency’s (WSA) Conditions at Freeze-up Report says the province is experiencing a dry winter in most areas. Early summer and spring precipitations were higher than normal while the last half of summer and fall experienced soil conditions drier than normal at freeze-up. Southern and central Saskatchewan have adequate supplies of later water reservoirs.
On his ranch, Doug Wilson walks past an old abandoned three-storey home and stands at the bank of what had once been the flowing Maple Creek. The creek is dry again this year as brittle, dead tree debris litters the edges. Grass is growing where, at one time, water would have normally passed by. “Over the last 20 years we’ve seen a huge amount of tree loss,” Wilson said earlier this summer near the southwest Saskatchewan town. “It’s dying. The whole area is dying.” Wilson relies on the water to feed his cattle. It represents his livelihood and helps him survive. But over the last few years, he’s had to reduce his herd size from 600 cattle to 400. He’s also had to pay for someone else’s feed because he’s been short on water.
The Saskatchewan government said it wants to know exactly what the federal government is looking for if it is testing water samples from farmers’ dugouts. Water Security Agency minister Jeremy Cockrill said the government received multiple reports from farmers last week that federal vehicles were on their land. A tweet from Pense farmer and former Western Canadian Wheat Growers president Levi Wood showed a photograph of a Government of Canada vehicle and two people.
For many southern Saskatchewan producers still reeling from last year’s drought conditions, a recent report on the spring runoff outlook may not offer much comfort. And perhaps no comfort at all, for those in the southwest. A news release, sent to accompany the Water Security Agency’s (WSA) March 1 report, states the organization “is currently expecting a below to well below normal snowmelt runoff response over much of southern Saskatchewan.” “Only areas east of Moose Jaw are forecast to receive near or above normal runoff,” the release reads.
Spring may be just around the corner in Saskatchewan. Daytime temperatures above freezing this week are a welcome relief from what has been a long, cold winter. Temperatures in Regina are forecast to hit 8 C by the end of the week, while Saskatoon will see highs of 6 C, Swift Current could hit double digits and even Uranium City will reach a high of –1 C.
A preliminary report from the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency (WSA) states the spring melt rate is expected to have a significant impact on runoff yields in southern areas of the province. How that impacts subsoil moisture levels or surface water supplies depends on the speed of the melt, the report states. Most southern regions experienced very dry conditions last summer and into the fall freeze-up, and a below snowmelt runoff potential is being forecast by the WSA.
Weather modeling data indicates that parts of central and northern Saskatchewan could see wetter than normal conditions between December and March, and near normal precipitation for the rest of Saskatchewan. Due to minimal runoff in spring 2021 followed by what was generally a hot and dry summer, most agricultural areas of the province are currently experiencing drier than normal moisture conditions. Conditions are driest starting in the central area of the province around Saskatoon and extending in a south westerly direction toward Rosetown, down through Leader and then to the Maple Creek area.
The Water Security Agency (WSA), with the support of Natural Resources Canada, is offering free online workshops called AgH2Onward to introduce farmers and ranchers to the Agricultural Water Management program in Saskatchewan, the process and benefits of drainage approvals, and innovative techniques to best manage water on their land. The free workshops are being offered until April 2022 and include two half-day sessions.
The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities is worried about a proposal to create a federal water agency. In a media release issued March 25, SARM said the creation of a Canada Water Agency (CWA) causes concern and raises questions about how the overlap of federal regulations will impact provincial rules.
On November 19, 2015, James Smith Cree Nation welcomed about 50 people for an open house at their integrated biological reverse osmosis membrane water treatment plant. The attendees were a mixture of First Nations, James Smith Indian Reserve residents, including James Smith Cree Nation (JSCN) Chief, Justin Burns, visitors from Stanley Mission, industry representatives, two representatives from the Water Security Agency, and main presenter, Dr. Hans Peterson.
