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There are thousands of watercourse crossings (e.g., culverts and bridges) across Alberta, and they’re more than just a way to let water flow. When poorly constructed or not properly maintained, these crossings put fish at risk by preventing fish passage and fragmenting fish habitat.

To help restore fish habitat and protect some of Alberta’s most at risk fish species, the AER and the Government of Alberta (GoA) have created an approach for managing crossings called the Roadway Watercourse Crossing Remediation Directive.

Participating in the Directive

The directive offers a voluntary watercourse crossing inspection and remediation program to crossing owners, such as oil and gas companies, municipalities, and other landowners. By participating in the program, crossing owners can ensure their crossings are in compliance with regulations, and help restore fish habitat.

The directive includes a system of inspection standards that allows watercourse crossing owners, the AER, and the GoA to work together on remediation activities for priority crossings. The inspection standards also ensure consistent data collection, provide cost-saving opportunities, and offer the flexibility to work with other crossing owners.
The directive includes:

  • a regulatory steering committee,
  • a stakeholder advisory committee,
  • project-specific task teams, and
  • the development of a shared data management solution.

How to Submit Inspection Data

Watercourse crossing owners in the oil and gas sector can submit inspection data to the AER in shapefile format. This file should contain all of the data that is collected in the field referenced in the Roadways Watercourse Crossing Inspection Manual and its associated inspection form.

All watercourse crossings, both compliant and non-compliant, should be included so that remediation activities can be planned on a watershed-based scale.

Email spatial data to @email in a zipped folder.

Who Can I Contact for More information?

To request an information package on this directive or to learn how you can become involved, email @email.