Administration

The Administation Department is responsible for the general administration of the district. This includes public relations, dealing with concerns from the water users, the collection of water rates payments, payment of expenses incured, and so on.

A Little About the Awards

The Great Blue Heron Award recognizes participants in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan who have made significant, long-term contributions that result in benefits to waterfowl and other migratory bird populations of North America. Recipients of this award are chosen from candidates located across North America.

The Alberta government established the Order of the Bighorn in 1982 to recognize individuals, organizations and corporations for their exceptional efforts to promote wise use of our fisheries and wildlife resources. In total, 99 individuals or groups have been inducted into the Order since it was established in 1982. Traditionally, recipients have demonstrated a commitment to conservation over many years.

Engineering

The Engineering Department is responsible for the rehabilitation of the canal and pipeline infrastructure within the District. Rehabilitation of smaller canals is usually performed by replacing the canal system with a buried pipeline system. This benefits both the water user and the District by decreasing potential algae problems that are typical in small canals and allowing for some pressure at the pump site. It also benefits the District by saving water due to the elimination of any seepage and evaporation. Water is also saved by the elimination of return flows that are inherent with canals. This rehabilitation is usually performed with a cost sharing arrangement with the Government of Alberta through the Irrigation Rehabilitation Progam or I.R.P. The I.R.P. is used by all irrigation districts within Alberta. Another cost sharing program is the Canada Alberta Water Supply Expansion Program (CAWSEP). This is a federally run program. A map showing the current 3 year rehabilitation plan in .pdf format can be downloaded by clicking this link

Current Projects

(2023/2024)
E Pipeline Steel Fittings Replacement (Vauxhall Block)
BK-2-2 Pipeline (Vauxhall Block)
BK-3 Pipeline (Vauxhall Block) - Phase 2

Future Projects

Year 0ne (2024/2025)

Lateral K Rehabilitation (Vauxhall Block) - Continued

Year Two (2025/2026)
Lateral K Rehabilitation (Vauxhall Block) - Continued

Land

The Land Department is responsible for keeping track of the land that is used by the district for it's operations. This includes land that is used for canals, pipelines and reservoirs. The land department also keeps track of information related to the land that is being irrigated. It's the land department that deals with companies and individuals that request crossing agreements and leasing of property owned by the BRID.

Operations & Maintenance

The Operations and Maintenance Department (O&M) is responsible for the operation of the water control structures and maintenance of serveral hundred kilometers of canals and piplelines. In the summer months, the primary activity is the supply of water to the farmers for irrigation of their crops. Work is also performed to keep water flowing efficiently through the district's network of canals and pipelines. This mainly involves cleaning the ditches of aquatic plants that can grow to such an extent as to significantly slow the flow of water, making delivery of the required quantities difficult.

The major maintenance work, such as plastic lining of canals to control seepage, is performed in the winter months when water is no longer flowing. The BRID crews also perform some of the smaller Irrigation Rehabilitation Project (I.R.P.) work. This is usually the installation of PVC pipelines.