PRE-FEASIBILITY TECHNICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF THE COST OF WATER TRANSFER FROM LAKE SUPERIOR TO UNITED STATES HIGH PLAINS REGION

Abstract

The Science Council of Canada in 1988 estimated that Canada holds 20 percent of the world’s fresh water resources and 9 percent of renewable water resources. However, water shortages are being increasingly felt in the United States and Canada. One of the ambitious and controversial water transfer schemes proposed to stabilize the water level fluctuations in the Great Lakes and to alleviate water shortages on the Canadian Prairies and in the Midwest region of the United States is the GRAND Canal Scheme by Thomas Kierans. The nature and size of this scheme has attracted the attention of diverse groups of people.Setting aside the pros and cons of the GRAND Canal Scheme, the engineering costs of water transport is a small but vital component of this endeavour. It has been estimated that the total cost of water transfer from the Lake Superior to a terminal reservoir in the High Plains area in United States is approximately $ 380 per acre-foot (1977-U.S). On the basis of cost estimates for a water conveyance system, it is suggested that the route examined for water conveyance is technically feasible and perhaps could become economically attractive in future.