The Competition for Water: Striking a Balance among Social, Environmental and Economic Needs

Alberta faces water scarcity challenges that make it a bellwether region for better water management policies, according to a C.D. Howe Institute study. In “The Competition for Water: Striking a Balance among Social, Environmental, and Economic Needs,” University of Lethbridge professor Henning Bjornlund writes that without a modern system for reallocating access to water, particularly from prior licence holders to new users, Alberta’s economic development and its ecosystems could be threatened. His findings and policy recommendations have potential application to other regions of Canada where water scarcity is a growing issue, including some watersheds in Ontario, the southern parts of the Prairie provinces, and in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley.