| Blucher No. 343 | |
| Official Name: | Rural Municipality of Blucher No. 343 |
| Settlement Type: | Rural municipality |
| Mapsize: | 200 |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Saskatchewan |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Type3: | Census division |
| Subdivision Name3: | 11 |
| Subdivision Type4: | division |
| Subdivision Name4: | 5 |
| Subdivision Type5: | Federal riding |
| Subdivision Type6: | Provincial riding |
| Government Footnotes: | [1] |
| Leader Title: | Reeve |
| Leader Name: | Blair Cummins |
| Leader Title1: | Governing body |
| Leader Name1: | RM of Blucher No. 343 Council |
| Leader Title2: | Administrator |
| Leader Name2: | R. Doran Scott |
| Leader Title3: | Office location |
| Leader Name3: | Bradwell |
| Established Title: | Formed |
| Established Title2: | Formed |
| Established Date2: | December 13, 1909 |
| Established Title3: | Name change |
| Established Title4: | Name change |
| Established Title5: | Amalgamated |
| Area Footnotes: | (2016) |
| Area Land Km2: | 789.64 |
| Population As Of: | 2016 |
| Population Total: | 2006 |
| Population Density Km2: | 2.5 |
| Timezone: | CST |
| Timezone Dst: | CST |
| Coordinates: | 52.012°N -106.168°W[2] |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Area Code: | 306 and 639 |
| Blank Name: | Highway(s) |
| Blank1 Name: | Railway(s) |
| Blank2 Name: | Waterway(s) |
The Rural Municipality of Blucher No. 343 (2016 population:) is a rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within Census Division No. 11 and Division No. 5. It is located in the north-central portion of the province on the South Saskatchewan River.
The RM of Blucher No. 343 incorporated as a rural municipality on December 13, 1909.[3] In 1958, the Patience Lake Mine was the first potash mine built in Canada.[4]
Numerous water bodies are located in the RM of Blucher No. 343. The larger lakes include Cheviot Lake, Bradwell Reservoir, Crawford Lake, Judith Lake, and Patience Lake.
The following urban municipalities are surrounded by the RM.
The following unincorporated communities are located within the RM.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the RM of Blucher No. 343 had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 789.4km2, it had a population density of in 2021.[5]
In the 2016 Census of Population, the RM of Blucher No. 343 recorded a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change from its 2011 population of . With a land area of 789.64km2, it had a population density of in 2016.[6]
The RM of Blucher No. 343 is governed by an elected municipal council and an appointed administrator that meets on the second Wednesday of every month.[1] The reeve of the RM is Blair Cummins while its administrator is R. Doran Scott.[1] The RM's office is located in Bradwell.[1]
Bradwell National Wildlife Area is a 123ha protected area[8] established in 1968. It is in the RM of Blucher, about south-east of Saskatoon. With the completion of the Gardiner Dam and Lake Diefenbaker in 1967, wetland habitat in the area was lost. Ducks Unlimited Canada was involved in a project with Canadian Wildlife Service to bring water to the marshes in the area to ensure stable water levels year-round. The water for Bradwell NWA comes via aqueduct from Lake Diefenbaker, which is about to the south-west, and controlled by a series of dykes, ditches, and water control structures. Directly upstream in the aqueduct system is Blackstrap Lake and downstream is Bradwell Reservoir.[9]
Bradwell NWA is in the Moist Mixed Grassland ecoregion. The landscape has groves of trembling aspen and idled hayfields. A total of five wetlands are protected within the NWA and birds found there include the bobolink, horned grebe, redhead, canvasback, northern pintail, ruddy duck, lesser snow goose, white-fronted goose, marbled godwit, and the Wilson's phalarope.[10]