A Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright UCP nomination candidate published a lengthy water policy essay this week that never mentions one of the biggest controversies tied to the law she’s discussing.
Jackie Tomayer, general manager of the Lloydminster Agricultural Exhibition Association, is one of five candidates seeking the United Conservative Party nomination in Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright. She posted a “Talk Tuesday” piece on Alberta water policy, focused heavily on Bill 7, the Water Amendment Act.
Tomayer said Alberta needs to weigh both supply and conservation, rather than pick one approach.
“I believe it is going to be a combination of both options to truly protect our province’s water and protect Albertans,” Tomayer wrote.
She said the bigger risk is letting one industry win at another’s expense.
“One of the challenges will be ensuring that decisions made do not favour one sector at the expense of another,” she wrote.
Tomayer also framed water policy as a generational issue, tying it to her own reasons for considering public office.
“Part of the reason I am considering public service is because I want the next generation to inherit a province that is stronger, more resilient and better cared for than the one we received,” she wrote.
She lays out four priorities: conservation, modern infrastructure, better water data and long-term watershed protection. She does not mention Treaty 6, 7 and 8 chiefs, who have fought the legislation since before it passed.
What the bill does
The Alberta government introduced Bill 7 on Oct. 30, 2025. It passed third reading Dec. 2, 2025, and received royal assent 10 days later. It came into force March 14, 2026.
The law lets the environment minister approve “low risk” water transfers between major river basins by ministerial order. Previously, those transfers needed a special act of the legislature. It also merges the Peace-Slave and Athabasca river basins into one management area.
Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz said the old process was slow and kept water from getting where it was needed. The government has said the changes support a growing population and economy.
Chiefs pushed back within a day
The Chiefs Steering Committee on Technical Services, representing First Nations across Treaty 6, 7 and 8 territories, condemned the bill the day after it was introduced.
“We demand that the Government of Alberta immediately stop action on Bill 7 and insist on real and legally required dialogue to establish a modern water management strategy that doesn’t just pray for rain,” said Chief Vernon Watchmaker of Kehewin Cree Nation, Treaty 6 territory.
Chief Troy Knowlton of Piikani Nation, Treaty 7 territory, said the bill strips away accountability.
“They are effectively robbing Peter to pay Paul, while they strip away accountability and minimize Indigenous oversight on decisions that impact our peoples’ health, wellbeing and futures,” said Knowlton.
On Dec. 22, 2025, three Treaty 8 chiefs announced plans to file litigation to halt the law. Chief Sheldon Sunshine of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation said handing control to a single minister strips away protections for every Albertan’s tap water, not just First Nations.
The Chiefs Steering Committee renewed its opposition when the act came into force in March, calling it a violation of the duty to consult.
Local stakes
Frog Lake First Nation, a Treaty 6 community south of Bonnyville, has not issued its own public statement on Bill 7. Its chief, Gregory Desjarlais, also serves as grand chief of the Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations and has spoken out against other Alberta legislation over a lack of Indigenous consultation.
“We’re tired of seeing the government pass these bills where you don’t see two sentences of Indigenous inclusion, and that has to stop,” Desjarlais said at an anti-separatist rally in Edmonton earlier this year, referring to a different bill.
Tomayer’s post frames water as central to Alberta’s economic future, a framing that matches the government’s own messaging on the bill. She raises open questions about stewardship and risk, and writes that good stewardship “means looking beyond the next election cycle.” But her post does not address the consultation dispute or the pending litigation.
The UCP has not set a nomination date for Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright. Other candidates in the race include Dale Aalbers, Paul Conlon, Adam Doyle and Stacy Miskiw.
Read more: Breaking: UCP MLA will not run in next election
