Province could do more to minimize flood damage

When the 2005 southern Alberta flood occurred, swamping low areas of Calgary and flooding High River, provincial officials were quick to point out that this was a one-in-100-year flood and did nothing to prepare for the next flood, which we now know can come at any time.

I grew up in the Oldman River valley near Lethbridge’s High Level Bridge. We experienced flooding of the Oldman River and eventually the provincial government bought up all the homes in the river valley and turned the area into a provincial park, leaving natural areas to absorb future floodwaters. It was good thinking and good planning. Which makes me wonder why no similar steps were taken with respect to the Highwood and Bow River systems.

Just east of Canmore, there is a small power dam on the Bow River that could easily be expanded with an adjoining catchment basin. It is a relatively flat area of glacial till formation with lots of room to excavate enough land for a lake. My wife and I spend almost every fall in the area and I know it well.

The same can be said for the Highwood River system which originates in the Lougheed Provincial Park, runs south to near Longview before turning downhill to High River in the east. I’ve often stopped near Longview and looked below at the foothills country, envisioning several areas where a large earth dam could be built to store spring mountain runoff.

The cost of the 2013 flood in both Calgary and High River will far exceed the cost of small dams on the Bow and Highwood Rivers. I urge the provincial government to get to work planning these projects before the now onein-eight-year flood comes every year.

Bob Russell, St. Albert

GETTY IMAGES Water from the Bow River floods a Calgary neighbourhood on Saturday. Much of the damage could be prevented if areas prone to flooding were left as parkland, rather than being developed, a reader suggests.