Northern River Basins Study

Lists Northern River Basins Study technical reports by issue number, subject, and geographic area studied. Subject areas used to classify the reports are: hydrology/hydraulics, nutrients/dissolved oxygen, contaminants, food chain, drinking water, other uses, traditional knowledge, and synthesis and modelling. Ten geographic divisions are used: three each for the Athabasca and Peace Rivers, and one each of the Wapiti/Smoky rivers, Peace-Athabasca Delta, Lake Athabasca, and Rivière des Rochers/Slave River.

Presents a synthesis of reports on the environmental and socio-economic characteristics of the Peace, Athabasca, and Slave river basins in northern Alberta. Includes information on basin hydrology, basin inhabitants, physiographic features (geology, soils, vegetation), climate and weather, fish and wildlife, land use (for urban development, agriculture, forestry, resource extraction, tourism, recreation, transportation, fishing, and hunting/trapping), water quality and quantity, and the jurisdictional framework for resource management in the basin area. The final chapter contains an outline of the history of the area and discussion of issues related to sustainable development in the basin area.

The NTBS was designed to address the ecological concerns about pulp mill expansion, and to increase scientific knowledge about environmental conditions [ecology, ecosystem sustainability, water pollution and control, habitat, effect on fish and fishing, etc.] in the major river systems of the north. The study's objectives were to gather and interpret sound scientific information about the basins, develop appropriate recommendations for basin management, and communicate effectively with the public. The government response report confirms the governments' commitment to ecosystem sustainability and to pollution control in northern rivers. First Nations and Metis aboriginal [native] peoples contributed significantly to the NRBS.

Provides a summary of flow and lake level information for water bodies in the Peace, Athabasca, and Slave river basins to provide a hydrologic background for many of the other reports in the Northern River Basins Study series. It examines trends in river flows for both the main stems and significant tributaries; for lake levels, both natural and regulated conditions are examined. Ice processes are also discussed along with some of the environmental effects.

The Northern River Basins Study Board will be formulating recommendations covering many areas likely of consequence or interest to basin residents. To assist the Board in this task, a series of projects was initiated to survey the residents on their use of northern river basins waters. Existing information was either not available or as extensive as required. This report details the background work undertaken to devise a survey instrument and strategy to capture for households a representative cross-section of information on water use and resident attitudes toward the water resource. The report also assesses the most effective means for approaching and obtaining information from stakeholder groups. The appendix includes the project terms of reference, a description of how the population stratification method could be applied for the survey, and a draft questionnaire.

The Northern River Basins Study Board will be formulating recommendations covering many areas likely to be of consequence or interest to basin residents. To assist the Board in this task, a series of projects was initiated to survey the residents on their use of northern river basins waters. This report details the efforts undertaken to develop a list of stakeholders that should be approached for input in a workshop setting. These efforts included designing a stakeholder questionnaire, conducting a telephone survey, and analyzing the data. It also reviews the survey results, including the types and membership of stakeholder groups, use of river basins, water management and water use concerns, and preferred location and time of the proposed workshops. The appendix includes a copy of the questionnaire and a directory of stakeholder groups in the survey sample (by category).