The Red Deer River. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

SEPT. 18-25 AT RDP

Water for 2050 symposium talks water security amidst climate change and increased demand

Sep 18, 2024 | 4:17 PM

Red Deerians, industry leaders, and organizations concerned about the future availability of water in the Red Deer/South Saskatchewan Basin are invited to the Water for 2050 symposium at Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP).

The event was organized by the Council of Canadians, Red Deer River Naturalists, and RDP in light of increasing demands and predicted changes in climate that may impact the future of our local water security.

The symposium will run from Sept. 18-25, with two presentations per evening. Several experts on water management and planning are invited to speak, including Kevin Van Tighem a conservation advocate and award-winning author of 15 books on wildlife and nature, who will open the event.

Presentations will be at RDP and live-streamed and posted to YouTube for those that can’t make the event in person. Sessions can be joined via Zoom, and more details can be found on the event’s Facebook page.

The presentation schedule is as follows:

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September 18

• 6:00 p.m. – Kevin VanTighem – Sponge or Sieve? How land use in the west country will determine tomorrow’s water security.
• 7:00 p.m. – Dr. Richard Schneider, Nature Alberta, The Big Picture – How Prairie Ecosystems will Change Under a Warmer Climate

September 19

• 6:00 p.m. – Dr. John Pomeroy, Global Water Futures – Predicting River Flows, Adapting to Alberta’s Uncertain Future
• 7:00 p.m. – Dr. Bill Mackay – Water in Alberta 2050: An Historical Perspective

September 20

• 6:00 p.m. – Bob Sandford, United Nations University – Redeeming Tomorrow: Canada In a Warmer World
• 7:00 p.m. – Open

September 21

• Open

September 22 (World Rivers Day)

• 10:00 a.m. – Fort Normendeau, Urban Aboriginal Voices Society – World Rivers Day Celebration, featuring smudge, water ceremony, songs, and more.

September 23

• 6:00 p.m. – Trout Unlimited Canada – Better Ways to Store Water on the Landscape
• 7:00 p.m. – Donald Selby, Wetland/Waste Land – A Conservation of Change Documentary, highlighting emerging conflicts in the Canadian prairies over the apparently conflicting needs of wetlands and agriculture.

September 24

• 6:00 p.m. – Francine Forrest – Watershed reporting and planning in a changing environment – WPAC roles, state of the Red Deer River watershed report
• 7:00 p.m. – Open

September 25

• 6:00 p.m. – Cheryl Bradley, Friends of the Oldman, SAGE – Consider the River in Water and Watershed Management
• 7:00 PM – Summary comments/open forum

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