Advocates call for reduction of fresh water pumping in Medicine River

PONOKA COUNTY -- The Medicine River Watershed Society is raising concerns relating to fresh-water pumping in the Medicine River.

The organization says the river is already struggling, and that having water pumped from it during the summer months compounds the issue. Fresh-water pumping in the Medicine River is typically conducted during hot stretches from June to September and repurposed for oil-field uses.

To address the issue, the Medicine River Watershed Society has penned a letter to the provincial government. They're calling on them to reduce their pumping thresholds in order to improve river quality.

The not-for-profit says they've been very active the last four years in dealing with the health of the Medicine River. Their group has been sampling the river for the last four summers and will continue to sample this summer. Once the sampling results are in, they'll be making presentations in various locations throughout the watershed to report their findings.

The Medicine River runs through Ponoka County and is a key drainage feature of the area.