Dry dam construction | Alberta government says affected landowners will be compensated
Alberta’s plans to protect communities against future floods may be a case of sacrificing a few for the good of the many.
A dry dam in the community of Springbank, 14 kilometres west of Calgary, and a river diversion south of High River will go ahead to prevent the magnitude of damage experienced last year when southern Alberta rivers spilled their banks and caused $5 billion in damage.
“It is imperative that we do something to prevent something like that from happening again,” premier Jim Prentice said Sept. 26 in Calgary.
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A water reservoir was originally proposed for the Springbank area, while diversion proposals were considered for the High River area.
Cabinet considered the dry dam and diversion projects as most feasible.
“These are environmentally defensible solutions in the immediate term, and this ‘room for the river concept’ minimizes the disruption and the impact on landowners within the dry reservoir valley,” said Prentice.
He was referring to a Dutch engineering program where rivers are allowed to flow through naturally and have room to flood.
A dry dam is built with a hole in the bottom, which allows water to flow through at a regulated amount to prevent flood downstream. It retains water in a reservoir behind it, which is stored and slowly released later on.
Each project will cost $150 to $200 million and should be completed within three years. Environmental assessments and public consultations have been promised.
The dry reservoir will be used only during floods and affects about 15 landowners. It is intended to provide protection for floods categorized as once in 200 year events.
Private discussions will be held with landowners to decide if buildings in the affected area should be raised or relocated.
Evacuation zones will also be created for people and livestock in the event of the next flood.
“We will fully and fairly compensate to the standard required by law the property owners for any damage to their land and livelihoods when flood mitigation is necessary,” Prentice said.
Landowners in the region have formed an advocacy group and can be found at www.dontdamnspringbank.org. The group did not respond to requests for an interview by press time.
The southern diversion plan in the Little Bow River basin protects 13,000 people in High River and affects more than 40 landowners in the region.
“It will divert considerably more water away from the town of High River and will ensure the residents of High River are safe, much safer in times of peak flow,” Prentice said.
Shirley Pickering, chair of the Highwood Management Plan Public Advisory Committee, said no one in her area knew this was the final proposal, which has created more questions than answers.
“We are not sure what that looks like yet because they haven’t provided us with details,” she said.
“They have not provided any description of how many landowners will be affected or what will be the cost.”
Those questions, including how the entire region may be affected, must be answered in an environmental assessment.
Her group wanted a feasibility study that used local information, but it claims no one was consulted.
“We have no idea how they made it or what tools they used to make that decision,” she said.
Land use will be affected in the area, and she questions how people may be compensated or if property will be converted to public lands.
The province is also negotiating with Trans Alta Utilities to use the Ghost Reservoir west of Cochrane to hold flood water to protect Calgary. A pilot project ran this year, and the excess water was released in July.
As well, more people will be hired to handle outstanding flood relief applications for the disaster recovery program.
