Members of the Beaver River Watershed Alliance (BRWA) held their annual general meeting on Tuesday at the Willow Prairie Hall in La Corey and were greeted by about 85 people, their largest crowd ever.
Larry Kuchmak, from Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD), attended the event to talk about the importance of following current government regulations in the Alberta Water Act.
Kuchmak began his presentation by showing pictures of lakes and wetlands throughout the watershed that are in critical conditions and need to be cared for. Overall, he said the water levels have gone down throughout the watershed.
“There are certain things that have to be done, that have to be lived up to. Follow those rules,” said Kuchmak. “All of (the regulations) are serious. We don't want to see anyone that is non-compliant.”
Kuchmak stressed that people need to change the way they go about using water, especially when dealing with wetlands. The ERSD is working on a new wetland policy that Kuchmak hopes will be done within the year.
“(For) the wetlands we've lost, there needs to be compensation. It is too easy for construction companies to write a cheque to Ducks Unlimited and then just destroy a wetland,” said Kuchmak.
Gordon Graves, co-chair of the BRWA, considered the meeting a success and felt that Kuchmak presented a lot of good information.
“People seemed to be fairly engaged in (the presentation), even though we don't like to listen to regulations and the government telling us the way they see it, not the way we see it,” said Graves.
Many people appeared to be unimpressed with what Kuchmak had to say, but Graves felt it was beneficial for all who attended.
“I think what he had to say, while it might not have been the most sexy thing in the world, it was something we needed to hear,” said Graves. “There was a message there for a lot of us, that maybe we knew and kind of forgot or just pushed the ignore button on. The message came out again and every now and then we need that little push to remind us where we sit.”
Those in attendance voiced their concerns about the low water levels in the various lakes and rivers throughout the watershed.
Kuchmak and ESRD Watershed Planner Joe Prusak did their best to respond to the concerns and agreed that there are some issues with the current system. Both said that the Alberta government is working on ways to improve the system and record and recognize rivers and lakes that are in critical condition.
“We sort of know by phone calls and public concerns that some lakes have issues,” said Prusak.
He went on to say that they need help from the public to point out specific lakes and rivers that are in trouble.
“The department has realized that we can't do all of this on our own,” said Prusak. “We need help from municipalities and communities. That's why we have the Watershed Planning and Advisory Councils (WPACs). The government has to live up to their end of the bargain. It's not a useless exercise, but it does involve everybody,” said Prusak.
“Education is important,” stressed Kuchmak. “We can come up and talk to you but it doesn't help if you don't seek it out yourself. It's better to phone something in and have a false alarm, than not and have an issue.”
Graves also took the stage to let people know more about the BRWA and what it will be working on over the next year.
The organization is in the middle of creating a new Watershed Management Plan, which will consist of a scientific study of the watershed as well as feedback from BRWA members. The initial draft is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
The BRWA also has plans to conduct 150 well-water tests through the Community Groundwater Program. Last year they were able to go out and perform 105 tests.
Overall Graves considered the night a success.
“We got a lot of new memberships,” said Graves. “People are finding out what we are about and realizing they can come to us for information. What it's done is give the members and the residents another avenue that is not government. So they are asking there own people for ideas. I think we fulfilled our goals quite well tonight.”
BRWA honours two members
The BRWA honoured longtime members Ajaz Quraishi and Pat Valentine who retired at the annual general meeting last night.
Quraishi had been a valued member of the BRWA since the very beginning. While Valentine served as the Community II Alternate in the Steering Committee for the past two years.
“It's a way of recognizing, not just that they did contribute, but the value of their contribution,” said Graves. “Pat was always ready to take part in the debate and always ready to volunteer. Its something that I feel is ignored and that's recognition of contribution, because this took time out of their lives.”