Global News - Alberta facing water restrictions, ‘agricultural disaster’ if drought conditions persist
“And also, remember we’re seeing climate change now. This is what it looks like. And so (drought conditions are) not going to go away after a bad year. We’re going to keep seeing these effects year on year. Alberta was over five degrees above normal in December. If we have those conditions in the spring again, then we’re back into an agricultural disaster.””
The latest North American Drought Monitor map, dated Nov. 30, 2023. National Drought Mitigation Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
A new article in Global News sounds the warning call for water resources managers in Alberta, which seems set to experience yet another year of unprecedented drought. The article highlights the many knock on effects that limited snowpack over the winter months can cause later in the year.
From dwindling potable water supplies and restrictions on acceptable water use in communities, to increasing wildfire risk, crop failure and shrinking cattle herds, our changing climate is wreaking havoc on all aspects of society.
“We’re seeing an exceptional situation and it’s a continental drought and it’s long lasting at this point. And its severity and extent is something that the combination is unprecedented to my experience,” said John Pomeroy, University of Saskatchewan professor and Canada Research Chair in Water Resources and Climate Change. “Groundwater is the next one to be affected because it’s not getting the recharge that it normally would hold. It means we have to change how we manage water in Alberta.”
We hope the Canada1Water project will provide communities across Canada with the information they need to make data-driven decisions to secure sustainable water supplies into the future and understand the stresses that climate change is exerting on water resources. Stay tuned for the upcoming launch of the Canada1Water decision support system, which will provide planners with best-in-class forecasts for streamflows, groundwater levels and soil moisture over the coming decades.