December and early January have delivered tons of snow to the region. The seemingly relentless accumulation has its benefits and its drawbacks.
The region’s two cross-country ski clubs are enjoying the deep base and almost-daily fresh snow. Volunteer track-setters have been called on repeatedly to keep the trails well-groomed for skiing.
The same holds true for local snowmobile clubs, and Kinosoo Ridge was busy with skiers and snowboarders on Sunday despite the cold winds.
The snow also bodes well for replacing some soil moisture for the new crop year.
“In my view, northeastern Alberta’s above-average snow in November and December 2025 provides a hopeful start to the 2026 growing season,” said Momna Farzand, research agrologist with Lakeland Agricultural Research Association.
“However,” she said, “as a rain fed region, snowmelt alone is unlikely to guarantee a good or successful year. After last year’s extreme dryness, deeper soils may still be short of moisture, making timely spring and early summer rainfall critical for crops, pastures, and livestock.
“Dugouts may get some benefit from snowmelt, but they rarely fill completely without rain,” she
said.
Matt Janz, general manager of environment and protective services for the M.D. of Bonnyville, agrees
that it’s too early to know how much help the snow will prove to be. Still, he says, something is better than nothing.
“It’s a little too early, but any big amount of snow we have right now is encouraging,” he said. “It is encouraging because we did have a lot of producers hauling water last summer to their dugouts, filling up dugouts and hauling water to livestock.”
Janz said moisture in forested areas may help reduce fire risk in the spring. “We could definitely knock down some of those spring fires,” he said. “It could be very positive.”
The precipitation has kept everyone busy clearing driveways and sidewalks. Maintaining clear sidewalks in residential areas has been time-consuming for town residents, resulting in some uncleared walks and difficult conditions for pedestrians.
It’s been a big job for towns in the area to keep streets clear.
Cold Lake mayor Bob Mattice said city crews and contractors have been putting in long hours to keep up with the frequent snowfall.
“As a city we’re very, very happy with the work that’s being done removing the snow,” he said. “The snowplow drivers are doing a great job keeping on top of things and they’re doing a lot of long hours on the plows, plus the guys that are hauling snow away.”
For all the work and expense clearing streets, Mattice is also grateful for the precipitation.
“We actually need as much snow as we can take because of the level of the lake,” he said. “You can’t have it both ways. If we have a lot of snow, then the lake is going to come up accordingly, and that’s something we need to see because it’s low.”
