Non-Point Source Pollution

This project team was formed in June 2010 to improve understanding and management of non-point source pollution. This project builds on two recommendations from the Council’s Healthy Aquatic Ecosystems team and was tasked with completing four key tasks set out in their Terms of Reference:

1. Prepare a working definition of non-point source pollution to facilitate shared understanding of the definition and its intent
2. Conduct an assessment of non-point source pollution management in Alberta
3. Assess the policy, practices and regulatory tools that are used to manage non-point source pollution, and
4. Evaluate the state of implementation of policy, practices and regulatory tools for reducing or controlling non-point source pollution and offer recommendation that provide directional advice on how to better manage non-point source pollution.

Recommendations

The Council’s final report is the first of its kind to use a multi-stakeholder, watershed-based approach to develop provincial policy recommendations for addressing non-point source pollution. The report was released to the public on June 4, 2013 and makes five specific recommendations that reflect the need for knowledge and tools to determine:

• How much non-point source pollution there is (quantification)
• Where it is coming from (research)
• If it is a problem (evaluation)
• What we can do about it (mitigation)