The Sturgeon River begins in a small lake known as Hoople Lake, which is about 1.5 hours west of the city of St. Albert. The river then runs through Lake Isle, Lac Ste Anne, Devil’s Lake and Big Lake before going north to Gibbons, and eventually joining the North Saskatchewan River at Fort Saskatchewan.

Did you know?
There are no glacial inputs to the river; the only sources of water are from rainfall, snowmelt and minor contributions from groundwater.  

Keeping it Natural 

The Sturgeon River is left in its natural state to ensure that ecological processes are not disrupted. This means water is not added by the City when levels appear low and dredging is not supported either.

Ecosystems under heavy human influence require regular maintenance and expense and lose many of the natural ecological goods and services they provide.

Drinking Water 

The Sturgeon River contributes approximately one per cent of the overall flow to the North Saskatchewan River. It is important to note that very few communities still draw water for drinking water purposes in the Sturgeon watershed, and none draw directly from the river.

Did you know?
St. Albert’s drinking water comes from the North Saskatchewan River through EPCOR.

River Challenges 

The Sturgeon River faces many pressures, including climate change and drought conditions, water withdrawals for commercial use, nutrient and pesticide inputs from agriculture, cattle and homeowner use, continued wetland loss and riparian area degradation.

Studies have found that tributaries to the Sturgeon River are in poor condition and require riparian restoration and appropriate setbacks. As of 2012, (the time of the State of the Watershed Report) the watershed land use was 71 per cent agriculture, and there were nearly 800,000 head of livestock. Land use changes in the watershed have resulted in a decline in river water levels by 40 to 60 per cent.

---

Related Pages

River Critters ›

Sturgeon River Watershed ›

Water Monitoring ›