Regional Lake Stewardship Project

Regional Lake Stewardship Project

Lake management issues are complex and can include changes to:

  • lake water levels
  • water quality
  • erosion
  • removal of shoreline (riparian) vegetation

A team effort that brings together different skills to tackle these problems at a broader level can boost our chances of success. When communities take part, they become champions for the area! NSWA's Regional Lake Stewardship Project bolsters community stewardship through hands-on planting events and education projects.

NSWA has received multi-year funding from Pembina Pipeline’s Community Investment Program to complete our Regional Lake Stewardship Project. We are looking at lakes through a regional lens by focusing on communications, restoration opportunities, support for monitoring, and providing educational workshops.

Boots on the ground restoration: Restoration projects within the North Saskatchewan River watershed involve lake shore planting. This involves a site assessment, a planting plan and precrural of native flowering plants, shrubs, and trees. 

Participant sites become educational demonstration sites to showcase natural lakeshores. The sites are publicly accessible and are monitored for improvements to ecosystem services, such as biodiversity and improved water quality.

Woman and girl work together on planting.

Learning through doing: Kids helped at the Wizard Lake planting day and got to learn why native vegetation is vital around or near shorelines.

Planting Projects

Riparian areas are the transition zones between water and land, they slow and clean water before it enters an aquatic system; they also stabilize shorelines with their deep roots and provide critical habitat and food for an array of species.

To raise awareness and re-establish biodiversity in these important ecosystems, the North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance hosted two planting projects with the help of their partners. These projects were a great hands-on experience for community members to learn about the importance of riparian health in the watershed. This project was made possible through the generous support of Pembina Pipeline.

Planting Knowledge

The Wizard Lake planting event was focused on naturalizing a municipal reserve and elevating the importance of native plant biodiversity in our watershed to the youth in a fun and exciting manner. Youth in grades 4 and 6 from New Humble School got their hands in the soil to plant native species such as Canada anemone, yarrow, strawberry, and various willow shrubs. To complete this project, NSWA was fortunate to partner with the Wizard Lake Watershed & Lake Stewardship Association and Leduc County. This collaborative project saw the installation of 400 native plants along the shoreline of Wizard Lake!

A Plant Community

To slow and clean run-off and bring native plants back to the shoreline, NSWA conducted a planting project at Lac Ste. Anne Lake. The Summer Village of Yellowstone invited community members to join as they naturalized a bank along a drainage ditch leading into the lake. Joined by partners from Lake Isle and Lac Ste. Anne Stewardship Society, The Summer Village of Yellowstone, and the local MLA Shane Getson, 300 native plants were successfully installed. 

You can learn more about our watershed's lakes, find local stewardship groups, and access lake-friendly guides on our Lake Stewardship page!

Lake Stewardship

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Project Details

Using a regional approach to education & conservation through hands-on planting events that showcase natural shorelines.