Join the Calgary River Communities Action Group in advocating for upstream mitigation to protect the City of Calgary. We are a grassroots organization advocating for thousands of affected homeowners across the City of Calgary, and our neighbours in surrounding communities.
It’s time to put politics aside and do what’s right to protect our families, our communities and our city. Send a message to the Premier.
Effective, economically prudent, environmentally sound and urgent flood protection is what is required – on both the Bow River and the Elbow River.
Seasonal lowering of the Ghost Reservoir in underway annually, and is a first step in flood mitigation for the Bow River. It’s not enough though. Not nearly enough. Finding additional storage on the Bow River is critical and must be a priority of the Alberta government.
While there are a number of projects that have been proposed for the Elbow River, the one that fits all criteria is the Springbank Off-Stream Reservoir. It must continue to proceed, and quickly.
The Springbank Off-Stream Reservoir is a project that was designed to protect and preserve natural landscapes. It diverts water into a natural depression in the land and slowly releases it once the risk of flooding has passed. 99% of the time the land is left in its natural and usable state. Most importantly, this project, with further mitigation projects on the Bow River, can protect the downtown core from being inundated by the next inevitable flood. Experts have given this project the cost/benefit thumbs up. It will save taxpayers money now and long into the future.
In order to offer timely protection to residents of Bragg Creek and Redwood Meadows, the Government of Alberta has provided the municipality with the funds to construct berms and dikes, much like the ones that now make High River one of the most protected towns in the Province.
This City rallied hard to overcome disaster in 2013, but now we need to call on government to protect our infrastructure and economy, and keep our residents safe.
CALGARY, AB – The Calgary River Communities Action Group (CRCAG) is marking the fifth anniversary of the 2013 floods that devastated Calgary and much of southern Alberta with a grassroots campaign.
“Eight years ago this city was ravaged by flood waters and while it may seem like a unique occurrence, history and studies conclusively show we must be prepared for future flooding,” says CRCAG co-president Brenda Leeds Binder. “Lots of progress has been made in the last seven years, but we want to call attention to the need for mitigation solutions.”
The community organization has called on Calgarians and Albertans to write to their elected officials to prioritize flood mitigation work.
For eight years teams of engineers, architects, hydrologists, geologists and economists analyzed the problem and worked together to find solutions.
On the Bow River, the Province of Alberta and TransAlta have agreed to operational changes to lower the Ghost Reservoir seasonally. In late-2020, the three shortlisted upstream reservoir options identified by the Bow River Reservoir Options project progressed into the three-year feasibility study phase.
On the Elbow River, many potential solutions were evaluated. Two were considered sufficiently viable to warrant an in-depth comparative analysis – the McLean Creek Dam in Kananaskis Country and the Springbank Off-Stream Reservoir project.
While both options may be capable of preventing a repeat of the June 2013 flood, the Springbank project was demonstrated to be the preferred option as it is less expensive, can be completed much sooner, and has a smaller environmental impact.
“While the flood was devastating, it was heartening to see Albertans come together to help each other during those difficult days, weeks and months. We believe that as a province we can work together now to protect our communities and our citizens from future floods,” says Leeds Binder. “We have had an excellent working relationship with the government of Alberta and all the ministries and departments involved. We are looking forward to working with newly elected Premier Kenney and his cabinet in bringing this much needed work to completion.”
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