Breadcrumb Path Hyperlinks
Native Information
Article content material
The philanthropist society mentioned they’d have stopped a land donation that birthed the stream Glenbow Ranch Provincial Terrain in the event that they knew the tract may well be submerged to prohibit downstream overflow.
Talking thru a consultant, the Harvie society mentioned they’re deeply via the chance a 3rd of the three,250 acres they equipped to ascertain the landscape that opened in 2011 may well be underwater if the so-called Glenbow East dam possibility is followed.
Commercial 2
Article content material
Article content material
It’s amongst 3 alternatives the provincial govt is weighing to prohibit a repeat of the 2013 overpouring of the Bow River that inundated portions of downtown Calgary and alternative gardens of town.
“When the park was created, it was envisioned the lands would be protected in perpetuity,” mentioned Cam Crawford, who speaks for the donors and in addition the Glenbow Ranch Terrain Substructure board.
“If we ever thought this land would be put at risk, we would have gone to a nature conservatory … we are very concerned with the (possible) impact of the Glenbow East dam.”
Crawford mentioned the Harvies perceive the province is faced with a difficult selection to find an answer to give protection to Calgary and in addition grant H2O storehouse to mitigate droughts.
“It’s a very difficult situation with many moving parts,” he mentioned.
However he pointed to the 2 alternative choices — one a reservoir between Morley and Seebe and every other that will re-locate the Ghost Dam and building up the H2O capability of the puddle there.
Crawford mentioned the substructure favours the Ghost Pool backup as a result of it will be much less disruptive to landscapes like Glenbow Ranch and Calgary’s Haskayne Legacy Terrain which might even be flooded via a Glenbow East dam constructed there.
Article content material
Commercial 3
Article content material
It will additionally give protection to Cochrane date offering higher H2O storehouse, he mentioned.
His substructure, he mentioned, desires to be proactive to find some way to give protection to Albertans date satisfying the loyalty made to the Harvie society and the family.
“What’s in the best interest of Alberta is managing its water resources in the best way,” mentioned Crawford.
“We don’t want to get to the point of broken promises — we want to be part of the solution.”
In 1934, Glenbow Museum founder Eric Harvie bought the livestock grazing land that includes fields, deep coolies, aspen jungles, Bow River cupboard and sweeping mountain vistas that will turn out to be Glenbow Ranch Provincial Terrain.
They offered it to the provincial govt in 2006 for more or less part its marketplace price.
Lois Haskayne, who at the side of husband Richard donated a lot of the land and a number of other million greenbacks to form Haskayne Legacy Terrain on Calgary’s western edge, has expressed fury on the land being probably affected.
She additionally mentioned they might by no means have made their donations to town in the event that they knew it may well be sacrificed to flooding mitigation.
Commercial 4
Article content material
“We certainly wouldn’t have put all of this money into it if we knew it’d be flooded,” she informed Postmedia.
In a 2020 evaluate, the estimated price for Glenbow East can be $992 million, with Ghost Dam and Morley choices at $917 million and $922 million. However the Morley price ticket doesn’t come with land swaps and alternative conceivable repayment. Era the record says all chances would incur some environmental results, it concludes the ones suffering from Glenbow East can be maximum pronounced.
“No environmental differentiators were identified along the entire study corridor except for impacts on the existing Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, in the Glenbow reach of the river,” it states.
No less than 14 properties, it mentioned, can be inundated via the dam-created reservoir, date “wildlife corridors on both sides of the river would be impacted.”
However the record additionally says the downstream effectiveness of Glenbow East can be “very good” in comparison to “good” for the Ghost Dam and “fair” for Morley.
Officers mentioned Saturday the province has entered the then degree of the comments procedure, which incorporates a hydrological learn about and deciding on the positioning for a reservoir. The province says it’ll announce a choice at the Bow River choices early then pace and insists it favours none.
Because of family outcry, the province has prolonged a comments duration at the dam-reservoir choices from an preliminary closing date of Would possibly 6 to Would possibly 13.
The UCP govt says there’s been really extensive family session over the flooding mitigation technique that’s integrated in-person conferences, webinars, on-line comments portals over the path of 3 years.
BKaufmann@postmedia.com
X (Twitter) @BillKaufmannjrn
Article content material
Proportion this newsletter to your social community