Send a Letter: Demand better protections for wetlands

September 28, 2026

The Alberta government estimates that around 70 percent of the wetlands in the settled areas of the province have already been lost through human use and development. This is concerning because wetlands are powerhouses on the landscape; they provide us with numerous benefits including improving water quality and mitigating the severity of floods, wildfires, and droughts.  

Wetlands are diverse, and there are many different types, but all are valuable and provide benefits. Temporary wetlands appear and hold water for periods after a snowmelt or heavy rainfall, while seasonal wetlands hold water throughout most of the growing season but typically dry up by the end of summer. In the prairies, these types of wetlands are a key source of water in an otherwise dry, windy, and temperature-extreme climate.

Research finds they play a dominant and direct role in setting the rate, extent, and timing of runoff and flows in the region. Seasonal and temporary wetlands ensure Alberta has natural places to store and retain water on the landscape when it is available, which then function to slowly release it back into the watershed when conditions are dry and precipitation is limited. In a province that has already experienced considerable loss of wetlands, retaining the ones that remain is more critical.  

Despite this, the Government of Alberta is proposing changes that will remove oversight for seasonal and temporary wetlands on agricultural land. Previously, before disturbing any type of wetland, you needed to get a professional assessment of its value to ensure you were not degrading or destroying particularly beneficial ones. But, under the proposed changes, the provincial government has made the blanket decision that these classes of wetlands are expendable.  

If the decision is allowed to stand, temporary and seasonal wetlands located on private cropland will be able to be cultivated, seeded, sprayed, ditched, drained, infilled, and otherwise negatively impacted without consideration after amendments are made to the Water (Ministerial) Regulation and Alberta Wetland Policy this fall. The government has conflated permanence with importance, and we will lose valuable, important wetlands because of this decision.  

Join us in letting Alberta know that all classes of wetlands are vital and deserve protection.

Send a Letter: Demand better protections for wetlands

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I am writing to oppose your decision to weaken the Wetland Policy. I request that you do not undertake any changes that would remove considerations for seasonal and temporary wetlands on agricultural land. It is unacceptable to decide that whole classes of wetlands are expendable, and anti-scientific to assume they provide no value to the landscape.

Seasonal, ephemeral, and temporary wetlands provide numerous benefits. In the prairies, these types of wetlands are a main and key source of water in an otherwise dry, windy, and temperature-extreme climate. They contribute base flows to streams, reduce peak flows during floods, facilitate exchange between groundwater and surface water stores, increase habitat connectivity, and support movement of wildlife. Rich in biodiversity, they also provide prime breeding and nesting habitat for waterfowl, amphibians, and other water-dependent species as they migrate across the region. They help prevent soil erosion, retain sediment, sequester carbon, and absorb, transform, and remove excess chemicals like phosphorus, nitrate, nitrite, and pesticides, many of which originate from agricultural operations. They actively regulate the water balance on Alberta’s landscape, playing a particularly dominant and direct role in setting the rate, extent, and timing of runoff and flows in the prairies.

In a province known for limited precipitation and frequently afflicted by drought, protecting all of Alberta’s remaining wetlands is critical. Wetland loss has already been extensive in Alberta, largely concentrated in the same areas that will now see further declines due to the impending policy changes.

Ephemeral, seasonal, and temporary wetlands deserve the same oversight and due diligence as every other wetland class in the province.

I request the Government of Alberta:

• halt undertaking the proposed amendments to Alberta Wetland Policy and the Water (Ministerial) Regulation;

• conduct robust and transparent public engagement to ensure all interested and impacted parties have the opportunity to inform any amendments to the Wetland Policy;

• prioritize amendments to the Wetland Policy that would strengthen protections for all classes of wetlands;

• ensure the Wetland Policy is implemented as originally intended, to facilitate the net gain of wetlands in Alberta; and

• publish and maintain a publicly accessible database of all wetland loss approved by the province, including impact and replacement fees collected.

We need wetlands. We need abundant, diverse, healthy wetlands. We need all classes of wetlands, and all classes deserve robust protections. It is that simple.

I look forward to your confirmation of receipt and response to this email. Should your response and subsequent actions fail to address these requests, please provide justification for your decisions.

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