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Politics : Rat's Nest - Chronicles of Collapse -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Wharf Rat who wrote (4498)	7/30/2006 10:07:34 AM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 24210

Oil boom puts stress on water supply Groundwater quality, survival of fish at stake Hanneke Brooymans, The Edmonton Journal Published: Saturday, July 29, 2006 FORT MCMURRAY - Neil Rutley pilots the boat towards the banks of the Athabasca River, certain there will be fish lurking there. Not even the silty, murky water can drag out the suspense. Everyone on the boat knows they're there. These fish, after all, are at the centre of a raging debate about the minimum amount of water that needs to remain in the river to keep its ecosystem intact -- and how much water the oilsands industry will be able to take. Rutley continues his pursuit of the fish by lowering two devices into the water that would be the envy of any angler. Each array looks like an umbrella stripped of its covering. He flips a switch and the arrays deliver an electric charge into the water up to 30 metres away. Ahead of Rutley and his colleagues, a few fish fling themselves desperately out of the suddenly inhospitable water. Those closest to the boat float limply to the surface, where they're scooped up and put into a large metal tank filled with water. The fish are identified, weighed, measured and tagged if they're big enough, before they are returned, alive, to the river. Rutley, Fred Kuzmic and Dan Moats collect the fish data for the Regional Aquatics Monitoring Program, a group representing industry, government and First Nations in the oilsands region of northeastern Alberta. The twice-annual fish inventories in the Athabasca and Clearwater Rivers -- the most important rivers in the oilsands region -- are meant to provide a snapshot of the kinds and numbers of fish in the rivers. The latest report in 2005 indicated no serious problems. Although the studies improved understanding of where the fish hang out during the spring and fall, figuring out their winter haunts has been more challenging. And more important, as it turns out. The Athabasca River is at its lowest levels during the winter months. So when the provincial government tried to figure out how much water they could afford to let industry withdraw from the river, it became crucial to understand where the fish hang out during the winter months. This need to understand the aquatic requirements of a river is happening in all parts of the province, with varying urgency. Water is a major concern throughout Alberta. Three years of drought, along with a population boom that is stretching water supplies to the limit, prompted the provincial government to unveil a water strategy in 2003. It considers the growing demand for water by industry and people, and factors such as water pollution and drought. Scientists David Schindler and Bill Donahue's recent research shows the amount of water flowing through the Athabasca River has declined 33 per cent since 1970, due to a combination of human and industrial activity and climate change. Other Prairie rivers have suffered similar, and sometimes much more dramatic, declines. Their evidence underscores the importance of achieving the government's goal of improving the efficiency of water use by 30 per cent by 2015. Alberta Environment Minister Guy Boutilier expects all sectors in the province to achieve this reduction. But there is a focus on the oilsands sector because it is the fastest-growing industry. 1 2 3 4 next page canada.com