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Home > About > News > Advancing water solutions in a growing and changing province
March 21, 2023
Making Waves is an annual publication highlighting the projects the Water Innovation Program funds and supports to help Alberta plan for and respond to water issues.
Welcome to the first issue of Making Waves! We're proud to share this annual Alberta Innovates publication highlighting water solutions we support. We hope it will raise awareness of the amazing work being done to advance water solutions in our province and inspire the next great idea. You’ll find each article from this issue at the bottom of this page.
There is no question that water is a fundamental part of our communities, our environment and all aspects of our economy. Here at Alberta Innovates we recognize the critical value of water to Alberta.
Water can be found in all aspects of our programming, whether it’s water startups receiving advice from our Technology Development Advisors, communities engaging with water management experts at Innotech Alberta, our applied research subsidiary or the water impacts being considered as we search for net-zero energy pathway solutions in Alberta.
Alberta’s population continues to grow with a current five-year growth rate of 4.8 per cent. Our economy is expanding and shifting with surging energy prices and new investment in petrochemicals, agriculture and digital technologies. Coupled with a changing climate, this growth will put new and unexpected pressures on Alberta’s water resources.
The Water Innovation Program, Alberta Innovates’ main water-related program, provides funding and support to projects that will help us respond to and get ahead of these ongoing and emerging water issues. The program has nearly a 20-year history of informing practices and policies and advancing technology throughout the province.
The breadth of support is wide-ranging from modeling efforts that inform alternative approaches to reservoir management along the South Saskatchewan River Basin to development of effective oil sands tailings dewatering technologies. The Water Innovation Program has experienced a few name changes and reorganizations since first established in 2004, but its core purpose has remained the same, to develop the knowledge and technologies that are needed to meet the goals of Alberta’s Water for Life Strategy:
This article is part of Making Waves, an annual Alberta Innovates publication highlighting water solutions we support. You can read more stories from this issue below.
Project supported through Water Innovation Program filters wastewater to produce cleaner water using less energy.
Roshan Water Solutions’ VeloCensTM technology reduces test turnaround time to support real-time decision-making about water supply safety.
Cutting-edge sampling takes water monitoring to the next level and puts it in the hands of everyday Albertans.
Mesocosms allow researchers to conduct controlled experiments within a simplified model of an ecosystem, replicating real-world conditions.
Recent work is helping assess and reduce the risks associated with reusing stormwater and rainwater, informing guidelines in development.
University of Lethbridge professor Chris Hopkinson and partners are studying how the interaction of vegetation with snowpacks will impact Alberta’s water supply
Synauta's machine learning algorithm could save more than 12 million tonnes in carbon dioxide emissions every year.
Investments through the Water Innovation Program have created a tightly knit and influential water innovation ecosystem in Alberta.