Overview
While the Alberta economy is fuelled by petroleum, it runs on water.
This initiative will bring together a range of Alberta and national experts to synthesize the wide array of water data and information in a manner that will allow for the development of a complete water budget for Alberta, taking into account surface water and ground water resources, current and future water use, and the integration of green and blue water resources.
The finished product will identify research and information gaps and develop an overall approach to the mapping of water risk and vulnerability. The initiative will also capture the ‘virtual water’ content of economic activities in Alberta – as an example, the water embodied in agricultural goods for export internationally and domestically will be defined.
This initiative will also involve a number of international experts in this field, and will allow for capacity building in the use of new models and approaches to integrated watershed management and improved decision-making. At the completion of the project a number of Alberta researchers and practitioners will have been trained in this area.
Investment
The Alberta Water Research Institute is investing a total of $325,000 in this initiative.
Goal/Outcome
Institutional arrangements; education and outreach.