The province will study the feasibility of creating a new reservoir east of Red Deer to help protect against drought.
Water demand by communities and businesses is expected to continue to grow, so the Alberta government is requesting proposals to assess the feasibility of a new reservoir on the Red Deer River near Ardley, which is about 50 km east of Red Deer, north of Delburne.
This study will estimate the costs and value of an Ardley reservoir and the benefits for downstream communities, farmers, ranchers and businesses.
“Central Alberta is a thriving region and we need to make sure that water is available to meet its growing needs," said Environment and Protected Areas Minister Rebecca Schulz in a statement on Monday.
"This feasibility study will help determine whether an Ardley reservoir can be built and operated for a cost that provides true value to Albertans, while keeping central Alberta communities and industries growing for years to come.”
Agriculture and Irrigation Minister RJ Sigurdson said the government has pledged to investigate a broad range of water management infrastructure options to ensure communities, irrigators and businesses have water when they need it.
"Our agricultural producers depend on Alberta’s irrigation infrastructure so they can continue putting food on tables here and around the world,” said Sigurdson.
The province owns and operates several large reservoirs in the South Saskatchewan River Basin, including the Gleniffer Reservoir in Red Deer County. Water stored in the reservoir created by Dickson Dam, helps supplement low winter flows along the Red Deer River and helps ensure an adequate water supply for Red Deer and Drumheller.
The provincial budget set aside $4.5 million to study whether a new reservoir can be designed, built and operated economically.
A Sept. 30 deadline has been set for proposals.
Consultants will be expected to provide a detailed analysis, including a technical assessment of the project, study area, and previous studies, stakeholder engagement strategy, conceptual design, geotechnical investigation, hydrotechnical assessment and a cost-benefit analysis.
Once the feasibility study is complete, government will determine whether to pursue this project and proceed with detailed engineering and design work, and regulatory approvals.
After a multi-year drought in parts of the province, the government has set up a drought command team and water advisory committee, updated a drought response plan, overseen water-sharing agreements and is now providing regular updates on drought conditions at alberta.ca/drought.
