St. Mary River Irrigation District

10/14/2026

SMRID is Hiring a Materials & Inventory Coordinator to assist with keeping our irrigation operations running smoothly. Visit https://smrid.com/careers/ to check out the job posting!

10/09/2026

Moving water is serious business!

Alberta is known to have some fairly dry conditions at times, so how does the south end up growing every sugar beet in the country?

The water needed for that doesn't fall here; it gets carried here:

💧 55 reservoirs catch the snowmelt coming off the Rockies every spring and hold it through the summer

🚜 11 irrigation districts hold the water licences and decide where it goes

🌾 About 8,000 km of canals and pipelines carry it to nearly 1.7 million acres of farmland, the largest irrigated area in Canada

That's how potatoes, sugar beets, dry beans and seed canola grow on land that would otherwise be too dry.

More on Alberta's irrigation strategy

https://www.alberta.ca/agri-processing-why-invest-in-alberta

10/09/2026

SMRID offices and shops will be closed Monday, October 12 for Thanksgiving Monday. Regular hours will resume Tuesday, October 13.

10/08/2026

That's a wrap on Irrigation Season 2026!
Thank you to our Irrigators, tour attendees, partners, staff and Board of Directors for another successful water season in the books!

09/30/2026

September 30 is Canada's National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and is a day to honour children who did not return home, Survivors of the residential school system, and their families and communities.

Today is an opportunity to listen, learn, reflect on this history and its ongoing effects, and to consider the role each of us can play in reconciliation.

09/29/2026

Reminder: SMRID's shutoff date is Thursday, October 8, 2026.

09/18/2026

08/27/2026

Phase 1 of the Chin Expansion will replace the existing irrigation outlet at the west dam and raising the dam to accommodate the future water level raise upon completion of both Phases 1 and 2 of the expansion project, marking a milestone in the investment into long-term safety, reliability and capacity of one of the District’s most important water storage assets.

08/27/2026

It has been a long time coming! Today we celebrated breaking ground on Phase 1 of the Chin West Dam Rehabilitation Project.

Chin Reservoir is the largest District-owned reservoir in the St. Mary Project the Chin Expansion project is one of the most significant infrastructure projects the District has undertaken in decades.

By upgrading the West Dam and replacing the aging irrigation outlet, we are strengthening the safety, reliability and performance of a critical part of our water delivery system.

This is also the first step toward the larger Chin Reservoir Expansion. Phase 2 will build on the work we are beginning today. Once the required regulatory approvals are in place, Phase 2 of the expansion will take place, relocating the East Dam approximately 10 kilometres east and raising the reservoir water level by 2.6 metres adding approximately 103,500 acre-feet of storage.
Projects of this scale are only possible through strong partnerships.

The SMRID is grateful to the YourAlberta (Government of Alberta) for its support through the AIM Program, to the Raymond Irrigation District for its contribution and partnership, to the Infrastructure Bank, our engineering and project management partners at MPE a division of Englobe and to our construction partners at at Greenfield Construction Ltd. for helping bring this project forward.

An incredible milestone, indeed!