Summary - The Proposed Water Utility Partnership Project
The demand for water in Alberta is increasing in step with its expanding economy and the Athabasca River is a prime example. This water is collected in the watersheds and delivered through the river and aquifer system to places where towns, cities, agriculture and industry use it for living, growing and industrial processes. Adequate clean water is essential to both life and a vibrant economy.
Concomitant with the rising demand for water, our main watersheds and delivery channels (rivers) are under increasing pressure from agriculture, forestry, industry and residential developments. These developments have the potential to limit the effectiveness of watersheds to collect, process and store water. Similar development pressures are having a negative effect on riparian zones, including adjacent wetlands, that store and process water, prevent flooding and erosion, and deliver it safely downstream.
There is a very successful historical example in Alberta of a management model for the delivery of a product by an organization (which never owned the product - thus this is not about ownership of the water) through a linear network. It can be argued that this historical model can be applied to a river system. The historical model was the Alberta Gas Trunk Line (AGTL).
The AGTL was a unique (at the time) public/private partnership distinguished by the following characteristics:
Incorporation by a Special Act of the Legislature. Protection of public interests via statutory provisions, government ownership portion, and a two-phase (facilities and rates) regulatory regime. A unique corporate structure involving key private interests, the government of Alberta, and the capacity to raise private investment capital to build and maintain the system.
Similarly, a river system, such as the Athabasca River, connects a variety of public and private interests of importance to Alberta.
The proposed project will develop a detailed proposal for a pilot project on how such a water management partnership could be set up for a river system in Alberta. The proposal will include a partnership structure based on the AGTL model. Such a partnership would have the objective of maintaining and preserving the watershed in a state where the ecosystem services it provides are unimpaired for the use and enjoyment of future generations.
Also refer to the Manning Centre website at www.manningcentre.ca
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