When European settlers first came to the prairie country of the Bow River basin, they found First Nations peoples living in a vast grassland with few lakes and streams. Early in the last century, irrigation districts were established to move Bow River water out onto the prairie. Through a system of canals and storage reservoirs, water was supplied to farmers. Over time, communities and industries also grew on the prairie, and the irrigation system supplied water for their needs.

Native prairie grassland east of Brooks (R.J.W. Turner, GSC 2005-192)	Bassano dam on the Bow River (R.J.W. Turner, GSC 2005-207)
Irrigation canal south of Brooks (R.J.W. Turner, GSC 2005-208)	Water storage in wetland near Brooks (Courtesy of Ducks Unlimited Canada)
Irrigation spray near Vauxhall (R.J.W. Turner, GSC 2005-205)	A hay harvest north of Brooks (R.J.W. Turner, GSC 2005-206)

Irrigation starts in May and continues until October. Irrigation water is diverted from the river into a system of canals and reservoirs. These provide important wetland habitat for waterfowl and fish. Improved irrigation techniques have greatly reduced the water required to grow crops, allowing more crop production while using the same amount of water.

It takes 8400 litres of water to produce half a kilogram of steak. larger image [JPEG, 288.7 kb, 1075 X 742, notice]