Kamp Kiwanis after the 2013 floods. Photo credit: Springbank Community Association
Against the Current:
Springbank Community Association Karin Hunter Speaks against one of the proposed plans by the Alberta government
Former premier Jim Prentice called it a fail-safe project to prevent future flooding in Calgary. But six years and nearly half a billion dollars later, the Springbank Offstream reservoir project SR-1 hasn't been built. The biggest opposition comes from the Springbank community association. President Karen Hunter believes that the project is outdated and can negatively impact the ecosystem of wild animals, and impact other rural areas of Alberta.
Impact on the community
Springbank county stands to lose upwards of 1,600 acres or more of land over its life. The offstream reservoir is predicted to be an eight story high dam, looking over a four kilometer wide plot of land in central Springbank. An additional four kilometer diversion channel will run 25 meters deep to take water from the Elbow River only three kilometers away from the main road and schools of the county. Only in the event of another major flood is that space expected to be filled with water, but for the majority of time it will be left unused and empty.
A map comparing different locations in Calgary to the Springbank Reservoir. Courtesy of: The Springbank Community Association
In the event the reservoir fills with water that is redirected from the Elbow River, residents say it will negatively impact the Springbank community. When the water recedes and leaves behind bacteria, silt and impurities, that could be carried into the Springbank community by westerly wind. “Springbank is effectively a big tailings pond,” says Hunter. “Everything will come down the river, settle in Springbank and that water, whatever is left of it, warm, contaminated, low oxygen, high sediment, will go right back into the Elbow River.”
The Elbow River Flows through Springbank and Kamp Kiwanis, which can lead to catastrophic damage if flooded. Photo credit: Sajan Jabbal
Kim Sturgess, CEO of Alberta Water Portal, contemplates the effectiveness of the project. "I mean, you look at where it is, and this is not a negative comment, it's not designed for that," says Sturgess. "The location is downstream of all the other communities that were impacted by the floods."
Sturgess outlines that the purpose of this was to collect water from the mountains in detention sites that could capture the most water in the event of a flood. "The 2013 flood was way up on the mountain side. The 2005 event which was technically bigger, more water, it didn't peak because it was so low in the basin."
"So Springbank, the SR-1 captures all that water lower down in the basin. So it's not intended to help communities any further upstream than Calgary," says Sturgess. "That's what it was designed to do. And there's a good reason for that, the lower in the basin, the more water that can be captured and detained."
Water Management
Another aspect critics say that the SR-1 project fails to accommodate is the use of flood water in other aspects like drinking, recreational use, and fire mitigation among other practical uses in Calgary and Alberta. “And so we all lose from this project, the city of Calgary and their water treatment loses,” says Hunter. “They might say that they win on floods, but they lose on water management because they need clean drinking water from the Elbow River, and Springbank is useless.”
Elbow River in Southwest Calgary. Video Credit: Sajan Jabbal
Environmental Costs
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The critics' third argument is that a massive flood will affect wildlife and the ecology of not only Springbank, but also the Elbow River. Accumulation of water in the reservoir will create a high silt, low oxygen environment and contaminated water system that will affect the marine and wildlife of the rural Alberta area.
Almost 4,000 acres will be dedicated to the reservoir area and in the event of a major flood, it is expected to fill in 24 to 36 hours. This will trigger what Hunter calls a “mass mortality of whatever lives in the reservoir,” including insects who pollinate the area, 200 elk, cougars, and aquatic mammals. Marine life would also not be able to thrive due to the contaminated, low oxygen, high silt and temperature water. Hunter says that there has been no research done by the government to predict the expected mortality and stress level of fish that will live in the reservoir. This will lead to hundreds and possibly thousands of fish native to Alberta like the Bull Trout dying. “And how do you rescue these fish?” asks Hunter. “You can’t. It’s not realistic to rescue fish and [federal] regulators have now said you need to put aside some of this fish rescue nonsense because it’s not realistic.”
Elbow River in Southwest Calgary. Video Credit: Sajan Jabbal
Rural Alberta
Finally, Bragg Creek and Redwood Meadows are not going to be protected by the off-stream reservoir in the event of a major flood. These areas around Springbank were devastated during the 2013 floods. It is proposed that berms would be used to protect those areas, but according to Hunter, costs of developing them have increased from $9 million to around $40 million. “So what you’re getting is people in Bragg Creek and Redwood Meadows saying ‘wait a second, you’re giving us berms? Well, berms fail,” says Hunter.
Aftermath of the 2013 floods shows damage to the Elbow River just outside of Bragg Creek. Photo Credit: Springbank Community Association
The Springbank Community Association leader Karin Hunter speaks against one of the proposed plans of the Alberta government
By: Sajan Jabbal, Bill Atwood, and Daniel Gonzalez