Dredging the Marina Bay Channel

The excavated channel from the yacht and powerboat harbour had gradually silted in over the last two decades. Suspended solids from the principle lake tributary Golf Course Creek that flows under Highway 11A, and those that migrate around the lake in the water column driven by wind and wave action, reduced the depth so that …

Sylvan Lake Precipitation 2018

This graph shows the precipitation history recorded by the Alberta Agriculture weather station at Hespero, west of Sylvan Lake from Jan 1 to November 13, 2018. The shortfall is 170 mm (0.17 m) of precipitation compared to the long term average. We assume that those observations at Hespero are representative of those for our watershed …

Air Temperatures and Solar Radiation Affect When the Ice Leaves the Lake

See how winter air temperatures determine the date on which Sylvan Lake becomes free of ice in April or May. There's no surprise: Cold winters mean thicker ice and a later ice-free date. Ice-free dates (the red arrows) are from the archives of SLWSS Director Susan Samson. Graphics were created using the Alberta Agriculture Weather …

Important News from the ALMS 2018 Workshop at Buffalo Lake

Three presentations at the Alberta Lake Management Society annual workshop held at Buffalo Lake on September 28 and 29 were particularly important for our Sylvan Lake watershed. First, see some Buffalo Lake  history here. Now, click on the links below to view the authors' presentation graphics: Dr. Judy Stewart, ALMS Loving our Lakeshores to death! …

UPDATE: Sylvan Lake Level 2018

This graph shows the lake level data measured continuously by Environment Canada after May 1.   Without significant precipitation and tributary discharge from watershed land into the lake through the summer months, about 10.92 million tonnes of water disappeared by evaporation from the lake surface. That is why the lake level dropped by about 0.26 …

The Public Record of the Society

The Society is well known in the Watershed community by our presentations at stewardship events in the last decade. Click on the links to learn more. Yesterday Today and Tomorrow-ASN-2010 Living by Water at Sylvan Lake-RDRWA-2010 Protecting Sylvan Lake-ALMS-2011 Making Watershed Decisions-RDRWA-2012 What We Need-Stewards in Motion-2013 Stewardship at Sylvan Lake-RD Rotary-2014 Golf Course Creek …

Responsible Care of Watersheds

Dr. Judy Stewart, an expert on municipal law and the environment has recently published a paper that addresses her title question "Do recent amendments to Alberta's Municipal Government Act enable management of surface water resources and air quality?" The SLWSS has demonstrated how watershed management could be improved by adoption of the principles of the …