Drought – Current conditions

Current status of agreements as of October 31, 2024:

• Red Deer River basin – not activated
• Bow River basin – not activated
• Oldman South Saskatchewan River basin – de-activated (as of October 10)
• Southern tributaries – de-activated (as of October 10)

Agreement signatories met regularly during the growing season to:

• assess water demand and forecasted supply
• work together to adjust their water use

Equally important, conservation measures taken over the last several months have helped reservoir levels in southern Alberta to recover after multiple dry seasons.

The final meeting of agreement signatories was held on October 10. Water-sharing agreements remain in place until the end of the year, although it’s very unlikely there would be an activation at this point.

• Learn more: Water-sharing agreements

As of October 31, there are 34 water shortage advisories in place for select water management areas across Alberta.

• Alberta Rivers - advisories

Based on monthly snowpack survey data (collected from February 1 to June 1), Alberta produces a water supply outlook that estimates the total runoff volume for 20 locations in southern and central Alberta. The water supply outlook is typically published during the second week of the month.

• Water supply outlook (August 2024)

The August water supply outlook is a long-term river volume forecast for the period from August through September.

Although there is very little change from the June forecast, natural flows in July exceeded the 2023 values in all locations in the South Saskatchewan River Basin, with the largest increases in the Elbow and Highwood River basins. 

Highlights of the July water supply outlook are below:

• Milk River basin – The forecasts for the remainder of the year are below average to much below average.
• Oldman River basin – The forecast for the remainder of the year is below average (St. Mary and Waterton) and much below average (Belly, Oldman at the Dam, and at Lethbridge).
• Bow River basin – The forecast for the remainder of the year is average at all locations, except Spray River and Kananaskis which are below average.
• Red Deer River basin – Forecasts are average.
• North Saskatchewan River basin – The forecast for the remainder of the year is average at Lake Abraham/Bighorn, below average at the City of Edmonton and much below average at Brazeau.

Alberta conducts mountain snowpack surveys monthly from February 1 to June 1 (the Milk River basin is also surveyed in early January). The data is published monthly in the water supply outlook.

In addition to the monthly snowpack surveys, the Alberta River Basins web application and the Alberta Rivers app provides automated snow pillow data from 18 sites, mostly in the mountains and foothills.

June snowpack survey results

Of the 16 June snow surveys completed by government, 12 had average or above average measurements. Fewer sites are surveyed in June because snowpack only remains at higher elevations. These are the final snowpack surveys for the year.

• Oldman River basin – One site surveyed (Akamina Pass 2) had no snow remaining but average for this time of year is only 25 millimetres.
• Bow River basin – All 12 sites surveyed were within the normal range or above.
• Red Deer River basin – Both surveys were within the normal range or above. Gable Mountain was the 4th highest in 42 years.
• North Saskatchewan River basin – One site was surveyed (Limestone) and was the 2nd highest on record.
• Athabasca River basin snow surveys – No locations are surveyed in June.

Alberta’s river monitoring network includes over 450 gauges that report near real-time data via the Alberta River Basins web application and the Alberta Rivers app during the open water season.

Notable measurements as of October 31 at 9 am

• St. Mary River at the international boundary – 12.2 m³/s, which is above the normal range for this time of year.
• Waterton River near Waterton Park – 2.5 m³/s, which is below the normal range for this time of year.
• Oldman River near Lethbridge – 22.8 m³/s, which is below the normal range for this time of year.
• South Saskatchewan River at Medicine Hat – 110 m³/s, which is within the normal range for this time of year.
• Sheep River at Okotoks – 2.2 m³/s, which is below the normal range for this time of year.
• Bow River at Calgary – 77.8 m³/s, which is above the normal range for this time of year.
• Red Deer River at Red Deer – 21.2 m³/s, which is within the normal range for this time of year.
• North Saskatchewan River at Edmonton – 157 m³/s, which is at the top end of the normal range for this time of year.
• Wapiti River near Grande Prairie – 30.2 m³/s, which is at the bottom end of the normal range for this time of year.
• Peace River at Peace River – 1,254 m³/s, which is at the bottom end of the normal range for this time of year.
• Athabasca River below Fort McMurray – 369 m³/s, which is within the normal range for this time of year.

Water levels in major southern Alberta reservoirs owned and operated by the Alberta government are shown below.

• Oldman Reservoir – Current storage is 59%. Normal for this time of year is between 62% and 79%.
• St. Mary Reservoir – Current storage is 50%. Normal for this time of year is between 37% and 69%.
• Pine Coulee Reservoir – Current storage is 57%. Normal for this time of year is between 70% and 83%.
• Waterton Reservoir – Current storage is 31%. Normal for this time of year is between 17% and 54%.
• Gleniffer Reservoir (Dickson Dam) – Current storage is 100%. Normal for this time of year is between 98% and 100%.

Water storage volumes in the major irrigation and hydroelectric reservoirs of the Milk, Oldman, Bow, Red Deer, North Saskatchewan, and Athabasca River basins are updated each weekday and available in the Provincial Reservoir Storage Summary.

Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation produces a soil moisture report periodically during the winter months, with frequency increasing during the growing season.

• Soil moisture report (October 24, 2024)