The Springbank Dry Dam was Pushed Forward while other Comprehensive Options have been Ignored.

The flooding of the Bow, Elbow, Sheep and Highwood Rivers in 2013 and the potential for more devastating floods still loom.  The Springbank Dry Dam has been the project of choice to tame the Elbow River and was believed,.initially, to be cost effective, focused and relatively straight-forward.  However the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency has raised technical and safety concerns regarding the dam itself and questioned the design capacity.  SR1 could not contain a flood similar to the 2013 event, yet we are warned to expect even more severe weather events in future.

We urge the public to lobby the Alberta Government to follow the CEAA directive and "Evaluate whether the Tri-River Joint Reservoir of Alberta and the Micro-Water Impounding Concept are feasible alternative means of meeting the Project's purpose. ...".  These options were presented to the Government of Alberta back in 2015 but were set aside because there was so much focus on a Calgary flood mitigation objective only.  These options would include a reservoir that can be used for drought management as well as flood protection.  This strategy could include some or all, of the Tri-River Joint Reservoir proposal, Micro-Impounding Water Concept, and once these high flow protections were in place, the Allen Bill pond in Bragg Creek could be restored and enlarged to again bring tourists to this area..  These combined solutions would protect all the Elbow River Communities and provide the first phase of a sophisticated water management system for the Bow River Basin rivers.

Proponents of SR1 assume anything further upstream would not protect Calgary from destructive flooding.  Yet we have witnessed that destructive river flooding occurs as a result of a combination of rapid spring snow melt triggered by heavy rainfall on the steep, rocky mountainsides.  This causes a high flow surge in the rivers that uproots trees and boulders in their path as they make their way out of the mountains, into the foothills and forests on their way to the floodplains where our vulnerable communities wait to face the havoc and destruction they bring.  Approximately 94% of the annual spring runoff is sourced from the watershed upstream of Bragg Creek.

Is it not commonsense to do what TRJR and the Micro-Water Impounding Concept propose - manage the high flow surges before they become an uncontrollable monster, destroying all in their path, while also conserving the precious, clear mountain water for use when needed for our growing needs?

Please share this Petition with friends and family as we need the public to be aware of our urgent need for protection from floods and the best options available to provide this.