Nicolle Flats (also known as Nicolle Marsh) is located immediately downstream and east of Buffalo Pound Dam. The Marsh is important bird habitat and its floating boardwalk is also a popular interpretive feature within Buffalo Pound Provincial Park.

The Marsh is not self-sustaining and in dry years the water level in the Marsh was supplemented by inflows from Buffalo Pound Lake. Prior to 2024 this was done via a gated conduit on the southeast corner of Buffalo Pound Lake. This conduit has since been decommissioned due to poor condition and Dam Safety concerns.

The purpose of this engineering RFQ is to complete the detailed design of a new means to fill the Marsh, with the fill location chosen at the north side of Nicolle Marsh where the Qu’Appelle River flows immediately adjacent to the Ducks Unlimited dike that forms the northern barrier of the Marsh. The specific engineering tasks are to:

1. Complete conceptual design, options analysis, and cost estimates for the leading options; and
2. Complete the detailed design of the chosen option.

WSA is a Treasury Board Crown corporation within the meaning of The Crown Corporations Act, 1993 (Saskatchewan) that is governed by The Water Security Agency Act (Saskatchewan). WSA is responsible for water management in the Province of Saskatchewan, which includes managing the Province’s water supply, protecting water quality, ensuring safe drinking water and the treatment of wastewater, reducing flood and drought damage, protecting aquatic habitat, and managing dams and related supply channels.