Impacts of Coal Mining on Lethbridge’s Water

Coal mining will affect the quality and quantity of water in the Oldman River.

Mines use large volumes of water to wash coal and to keep coal dust down. Selenium that enters the Oldman River can’t be filtered out by Lethbridge’s water treatment plant.

“Lethbridge and surrounding communities obtain their drinking water from the Oldman River and do not have the ability, as other communities affected by selenium pollution do, of digging a new well or finding a new source of water. There is at present, little scientific information on how to address selenium at the water treatment level and there are growing concerns among other southern Alberta communities. This is about both quality and quantity of water.”

Lethbridge Councillor Belinda Crowson