| | Irrigation Council consists of seven members appointed by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry; five public members and two government representatives, one from each of the departments of Environment and Parks and Agriculture and Forestry.
Members
Brian Brewin (Chair)
Mr. Brewin was first appointed to Irrigation Council in 2013 and served a three-year term. Brian was elected as a councilor for the Municipal District of Taber in 1998 and has served as the M.D.’s Reeve since 2010. Brian operates an irrigated mixed farm in the Purple Springs area that has been in the family for three generations.
Brian has an extensive background serving on boards and commissions including the M.D. of Taber Agricultural Service Board, the Highway 3 Water Line, the Highway 3 Economic Development Association (Twinning), and the Provincial Agricultural Service Board.
Currently, Brian is chairing the South Regional Storm Water Management Plan and is the M.D. of Taber representative for the Oldman Watershed Council, Southgrow, Taber & District Adult Learning Council, Barnwell Community School Development, Canadian Badlands and the Grassy Lake Recreation Board.
Mark Miyanaga (Vice Chair)
A third-generation farmer, Mr. Miyanaga currently operates a farm along with his two cousins in southern Alberta, having learned much about farming from his grandfathers, father and uncle. Mark holds an Irrigation Technology Diploma from the Lethbridge College.
With the large role irrigation plays on his farm, Mark has considerable first-hand experience in a variety of irrigation methods. Mark has been responsible for maintenance and scheduling of irrigation systems for over 25 years and manages 30 employees during the harvest season.
Mark has also been an active member on many non-profit boards including Potato Growers of Alberta and the Alberta Vegetable Growers (Processing). In addition, Mark enjoys outreach activities that allow him to discuss his love of agriculture and how food is grown in Alberta.
Willemijn Appels
Dr. Appels is the Mueller Applied Research Chair in Irrigation Science at Lethbridge College. She and her team investigate how new developments in precision agriculture and irrigation can be implemented in southern Alberta. This research is shaped in close collaboration with local producers, the provincial government, and the irrigation districts.
Hailing from the Netherlands, Willemijn trained as a hydrologist at Wageningen University. A post-doctoral fellowship brought her to the University of Saskatchewan in 2012, after which she decided to stay on the Prairies. Willemijn’s research expertise lies in water flow and solute transport on and in the upper layers of soil.
David Ardell
First appointed to Irrigation Council in 2008 as a representative of Alberta Environment and Parks, Mr. Ardell has diverse experience with the design and construction of water management infrastructure in southern Alberta and has been extensively involved with the review and delivery of environmental regulatory programs.
In his position as Executive Director of Operations Infrastructure Branch, Dave is responsible for the operation and maintenance programs for the provincially-owned water management infrastructure. Dave’s team also manages the delivery of canal and dam safety regulatory programs, and the fish culture program in the province, which includes monitoring for invasive species.
Rufa Doria
Dr. Doria is an expert in irrigation water management and has been involved in interdisciplinary research and developmental projects nationally and internationally. After completing her PhD in Bioresources Engineering in 2011, Rufa focused on the development of an irrigation model to assess the impacts of climate change on crop water requirements. Rufa undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Lethbridge Research Centre working on crop and ecological modelling.
Rufa has been a sessional instructor for agricultural courses both at the University of Lethbridge and Lethbridge College. Rufa serves as a Director of the ReadWorld Foundation Board, a non-profit organization in Alberta that works in the area of educational services through library resource building in post-disaster areas.
Rufa currently owns and manages Doria and Doria Canada Immigration Consulting Inc., and is licensed as a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant.
Anne Marie Philipsen
Mrs. Philipsen operates a mixed farming operation near Patricia with her husband; their operation includes 1,400 acres of irrigated land and a registered Black Angus herd.
Anne Marie was elected as a Councillor for the County of Newell in 2004 and has extensive background serving on boards, including the Palliser Economic Partnership, Red Deer River Water Users Group and the Red Deer River Watershed Alliance.
Jamie Wuite
First appointed to Irrigation Council in 2013 as a representative of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, Mr. Wuite has experience working in technical, professional, and senior management capacities. Jamie obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in aquatic ecology from the University of Calgary, and a Master of Science degree in land and water resources from the University of Alberta.
In his position as Executive Director of the Irrigation and Farm Water Branch, Jamie manages various sections which are responsible for conducting applied research on surface and ground water quality in relation to agricultural activities, providing technical and scientific support to Alberta’s irrigators and irrigation districts, conducting applied research on water application methods and technologies for irrigated crops, and supporting dryland and irrigation farmers with on-farm water supply issues. Jamie's team also represents agricultural interests in cross-Ministry policy and program initiatives related to water supply. |
|