Sustainable water management expands into the Athabasca River Basin
Sustainable water management expands into the Athabasca River Basin
The Alberta Water Tool provides accurate, scientifically defensible watershed reports for over 230,000 km2 of Alberta
Victoria, February 4th, 2019 Foundry Spatial is pleased to announce that it has completed and released a major expansion to the Alberta Water Tool, which now covers the entire Athabasca River Basin in Alberta.
First launched in 2016 to provide water management planning capabilities to industry and government stakeholders, the Alberta Water Tool provides a platform for industry, government, and the public to easily access water information in support of environmentally sustainable water management.
The Alberta Water Tool is a web-based decision support tool, providing accurate, scientifically defensible watershed reports at any location across more than 230,000 km2 of Alberta. These reports combine information on water supply generated from hydrology models, with information regarding existing water allocations and environmental flow needs for any region of interest. In a matter of seconds, users have actionable information which would otherwise take five to 10 days of effort for a professional to produce.
Over the course of 2018, the Alberta Water Tool produced 1,447 watershed reports. This represents an opportunity value of more than $7 million, which has benefitted water users, government regulators, and the environment.
Expansion of the Alberta Water tool was supported by the Alberta Upstream Petroleum Research Fund administered by Petroleum Technology Alliance Canada (PTAC) and the Sustainable Water Management in the Athabasca River Basin Initiative – a project delivered by WaterSMART Solutions with funding from Alberta Innovates, Alberta Energy Regulator, Alberta Environment and Parks, ATCO, Repsol Oil and Gas, Suncor Energy, and Westmoreland Coal Company.
Fast facts:
- The Alberta Water Tool is available across more than 230,000 km2 of Alberta, including parts of the Peace, Athabasca, North Saskatchewan, and Red Deer River watershed.
- Reports can be produced for 240,000 unique watersheds.
- The Athabasca expansion includes the lower portion of the Athabasca River, and also provides current and future hydrologic variability information for the Athabasca watershed, from the Athabasca River Basin Initiative.
- More than 11,000 water licenses are represented in the Alberta Water Tool.
For more information on the Alberta Water Tool, please visit: https://alberta-watertool.com
Media contacts:
Ben Kerr
ben@foundryspatial.com
250-858-8593
Mike Nemeth
mike.nemeth@albertawatersmart.com
587-832-6453
Petroleum Technology Alliance Canada
Lauren Gilmore, Communications Manager
lgilmore@ptac.org
403-218-7712