Introduction

The Middle Sand Hills Area of Concern lies forty miles north of the city of Medicine Hat, to the west of the South Saskatchewan River, and to the south of the Red Deer River. It is approximately 2480 km² in size. Relatively untouched until recent years, the near-native conditions in the Middle Sand Hills area are reminiscent of the Great Plains as they once were. The extensive mixed grasslands, sand hills, coulees and wetlands that comprise the Middle Sand Hills Area of Concern are home to 1,100 native prairie species, including 13 federal Species at Risk and 78 provincially listed “at risk” species.

A large portion of the Middle Sand Hills Area of Concern lies within the boundaries of the Canadian Forces Base (C.F.B.) Suffield military reserve. As such, the military is intricately tied to the history, and fate, of this wildland. In addition, once contained within the oil access area in the northwest corner of the military reserve (just outside of the Area of Concern) but now occurring even in protected areas, industry plays a powerful role in the Middle Sand Hills. Twelve thousand well sites owned by various companies are located on the Base alone, including as many as six hundred abandoned wells in need of restoration. The oil company EnCana holds approximately ninety-five percent of the mineral leases in CFB Suffield.

Status

• A strip of grassland plains adjacent to the South Saskatchewan River is protected as one of 51 National Wildlife Areas (NWAs) in Canada established by the Canada Wildlife Act. The total protected area totals 458 km².
  
• Under Wildlife Area Regulations, hunting and fishing, the removal or destruction of plant life, and commercial or industrial activity are prohibited in Wildlife areas. However, the mines and minerals found in Middle Sand Hills area are not included in this prohibition. Thus, these regulations have not protected the land surface from the impacts of access to the resources underneath.
  
• The remainder of the area outside the NWA, under the jurisdiction of the Canadian military, is not protected.