Category Archives: Water Law

The Alberta Emergency Statutes Amendment Act, 2024 Surges Executive Powers under the Water Act

By: Brenda Heelan Powell, Arlene Kwasniak, Braum Barber, and Ruiping Luo

Statute Commented On: The Alberta Emergency Statutes Amendment Act, 2024, SA 2024, c 9

PDF Version: The Alberta Emergency Statutes Amendment Act, 2024 Surges Executive Powers under the Water Act

Emergency Legislation and the Rule of Law

Since the 1215 Magna Carta, democratic society has been based on the tenet that the Executive in power is not above the rule of law. The United Nations has described the core values underlying the rule of law as follows:

… the rule of law is a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private, including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally enforced and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international human rights norms and standards. It requires measures to ensure adherence to the principles of supremacy of the law, equality before the law, accountability to the law, fairness in the application of the law, separation of powers, participation in decision-making, legal certainty, avoidance of arbitrariness, and procedural and legal transparency. (United Nations and the Rule of Law).

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New “Public Document” on the Agreement in Principle to Modernize the Columbia River Treaty

By: Nigel Bankes

Document commented on: “Negotiations to Modernize the Columbia River Treaty, Agreement-in-Principle Content, Public Document”, dated August 30, 2024, release announced September 5, 2024.

PDF Version: New “Public Document” on the Agreement in Principle to Modernize the Columbia River Treaty

In the first part of July, the governments of Canada and the United States announced that they had reached an agreement in principle (AiP) on the modernization of the Columbia River Treaty (CRT). At about the same time, the province of British Columbia released a backgrounder summarizing the AiP. I provided an ABlawg commentary on that backgrounder here and I have previously posted on modernization of the CRT here and here.

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Agreement in Principle on a Revised Columbia River Treaty

By: Nigel Bankes

Event commented on: Announcement of an Agreement in Principle on a Revised Columbia River Treaty, July 11, 2024

PDF Version: Agreement in Principle on a Revised Columbia River Treaty

Last week the governments of Canada and the United States announced that they had reached an agreement in principle (AiP) on a set of amendments to “modernize” the Columbia River Treaty (CRT). It has taken the parties over six years to reach this point. I have provided some background on the CRT and the launch of the renegotiation in previous ABlawg posts here and here. The parties have yet to provide the full text of the AiP but the Government of British Columbia has posted a backgrounder that summarizes the terms of the AiP as well as a useful Q & A page. Here is the text of the summary:

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Alberta’s Water Sharing “Agreements”

By: Nigel Bankes

Matter commented on: Water Sharing Agreements for the South Saskatchewan Basin, April 2024

PDF Version: Alberta’s Water Sharing “Agreements”

Last month (April 19, 2024), Minister Schulz announced that what she referred to as the “largest water sharing agreements in Alberta’s 118-year history are now in place to help respond to the risk of severe drought.” The press release referred to a package of four such water sharing “agreements” (WSAs). Each of these four agreements are in fact titled as a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The four MoUs are as follows: (1) an MoU in relation to the Red Deer River Basin, (2) an MoU in relation to the Bow River Basin, (3) an MoU in relation to the Oldman South Saskatchewan Basin, and (4) an MoU in relation to the Southern Tributaries (that is to say, the southern tributaries of the Oldman River, namely the Waterton, Belly, and St. Mary Rivers. All of the MoUs bear the header date of April 2, 2024, suggesting that they were all finalized as of that date. Continue reading →

Public Participation under the Water Act (Alberta): A Very Short Window of Opportunity

By: Shaun Fluker

Legislation commented on: Water Act, RSA 2000, c W-3

PDF Version: Public Participation under the Water Act (Alberta): A Very Short Window of Opportunity

The Faculty’s Public Interest Law Clinic regularly gets inquiries from the public seeking guidance on how to participate in decision-making under the Water Act, RSA 2000, c W-3. As well, the Clinic maintains an active list of projects on the subject of public participation in environmental decision-making. Common matters of concern that we hear about include draining wetlands, as well as impacts to groundwater. As water scarcity in southern Alberta becomes an acute problem, I expect to see a growth in public concern with development projects that affect surface and ground water. This very short comment is simply a reminder that if someone wants to provide feedback or comments on an application made under the Water Act, for example an application made by a company that plans to drain a wetland so that the area can be developed, they normally have only 7 days from the date of the application to submit a ‘statement of concern’ to Alberta Environment and Protected Areas. Continue reading →