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Water Storage Potential in Alberta's Thalwegs and Paleochannels

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Executive Summary Alberta sits atop a vast, largely unmapped underground network of buried valleys — the subsurface imprints of ancient river systems carved before and during glaciation. These paleochannels, mapped as thalwegs in the province's geological survey data, host some of the most productive aquifers in the Canadian Prairies. As surface water supplies face growing pressure from climate change, population growth, and agricultural demand, these subsurface corridors represent a strategically important — though technically complex — water storage frontier. 1. What Are Thalwegs and Paleochannels in Alberta? A thalweg is technically the deepest line along a valley or watercourse — the path a stream would follow. In Alberta's geological usage, thalwegs refer specifically to the mapped traces of the lowest points of bedrock valleys, whether those valleys are currently occupied by rivers or are entirely buried under glacial drift. The Alberta Geological Survey (AGS) has develo...
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Waskasoo Seepee Water Storage Proposals

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  Off-Stream Storage vs. the Ardley Dam: A Comparative Analysis of Water Storage Options on the Red Deer River The Ardley Dam is an on-stream reservoir proposed for the Red Deer River about 40–70 km east of the City of Red Deer, now in a $4.5-million provincial scoping-and-feasibility study (Hatch Ltd., October 2024 to fall 2026); unofficial estimates put it at four times the size of Gleniffer Lake and $2–4 billion, but no government has committed to building it and key specifics (storage volume, dam height, footprint) remain unpublished. Off-stream storage — diverting high flows into an adjacent reservoir — generally offers lower environmental impact (better fish passage, sediment transport, and instream-flow protection) but typically yields less total storage, needs pumping energy, and on the Red Deer has mainly been proposed downstream (the Special Areas Water Supply Project), which has stalled at the post-EIA-terms-of-reference stage with poor benefit-cost results. The hone...
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