OUR PURPOSE

History

In 2005, Alberta Department of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (“Alberta Environment”) implemented a moratorium on the issuance of new water licenses on rivers in the South Saskatchewan River Basin. Alberta Water Exchange realized the role that water license capacity would play in the future economic growth of Alberta.

Core Services

Development

AWE deals directly with both sellers and buyers of water license capacity. We are not a broker. We acquire and take title to existing water licenses, bring these licenses into good standing, and aggregate these licenses for resale to commercial and industrial users, land developers and other users of water license capacity. We also assist purchasers of this water license capacity in the transfer process including changing the point of diversion and the use designation of the water license capacity. AWE also takes a role in the building, financing and operation of potable water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to deliver water from the source river to the end user(s) and back to the river of origin.

Who We Help

AWE buys and sells both consumptive (irrigation, cattle feed, industrial processing and other water used in an activity that does not return the water to source) as well as non-consumptive or return to river water license capacity.

AWE acquires licenses from those who have excess or unused capacity, or simply no longer have a use for their existing license capacity. Our intention is to put the water you don’t need to better use.

Process

Initially we perform a detailed and careful assessment of the necessary steps to ensure your license can be brought into good standing. Next we focus on creating a plan to ensure the longevity of a compliant license. After assuring that the license will be maintained in good standing and is safe from revocation by Alberta Environment, we work to identify viable uses for those water rights. This often involves aggregating multiple water licenses which taken together meet the large volume needs of an end use customer(s) such as a commercial operation or land development company.

Regulations

After years of working with Alberta Environment, we understand the importance of properly adhering to all regulatory procedures in the Water Act to ensure a timely, secure and reliable transfer.