Council
and administration have been working behind the scenes meeting with local
residents, Mountain View County and the Province to address the flood
mitigation and erosion issues that arose after the 2013 flood event. We have been working very closely with
Mountain View County to determine viable solutions and propose solutions to the
Government of Alberta.
The Federal and Provincial governments hold responsibility and regulatory authority over changes to any river. The Provincial government has acted quickly to deal with devastating floods in many communities in Alberta through Disaster Relief Programs. Sundre has been approved to receive $659,000 to fund 8 flood recovery projects. Emergency operations costs were reimbursed $175,000, Greenwood Campground damage was $250,000, wastewater and water treatment plant repairs were $80,000, and repair of the rock spurs south of the bridge will cost $70,000. Also, 10th Street erosion repairs, recreation trail erosion and storm sewer cleaning amounted to $84,000. We are grateful for the Disaster Recovery Program funds allocated to us for these flood recovery projects. Efforts are ongoing to complete the listed projects.
Flood
Recovery and Erosion Control (FREC) is another Provincial program that we have
been seeking clarity about. In November,
2013, Town Council and County Council representatives met with Environment and
Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) administration to express concerns of
residents and to be sure that we followed guidelines and procedures as set out
by FREC.
Councillor
Myron Thompson organized a meeting with residents of Sundre and District on
January 9th, 2014. After that
meeting, a letter was written to ESRD Minister Robin Campbell requesting that he
meet with both local Councils to clarify procedures and plans. Representatives from Town Council met with
Minister Campbell on January 17th to outline community
concerns. Minister Campbell also agreed
to meet with Town and County Council before the middle of February.
Since the 2013
flood event, two engineering firms have been studying the river, the effects of
the flood, changes in the river basin and potential predictable impacts in
another high water event. Town and
County Councils had commissioned those firms separately. Those research findings were shared with each
other as Councils, with the Province at meetings on January 21st and
23rd, and with Associate Minister of Municipal Affairs, Kyle Fawcett,
on January 30th.
If this
all seems complicated - it is. To
simplify, we have been approved to receive $659,000 from the Province for flood related damage
and we are grateful for the support and quick action of our Provincial
government. The Town of Sundre and Mountain View County Councils are working
together to present solutions for longer term "river mitigation"
strategies that will protect residents, property and water quality to local and
downstream residents and river users.
Those suggestions are backed by science and research from engineering
studies. Nobody wants to "rush to failure" as Minister Fawcett
stated. Not all projects will be
completed by June 2014. Of 40 flood-affected
municipalities, 8 have applied for FREC funds of $2.5 billion. Long-term river mitigation will require
Federal as well as Provincial financial support.
We will
keep you informed as new information becomes available. If you would be interested in more detailed
information please call me (403-638-3535 at home) and we can set up an open
house to provide you with clarity on some of these issues.
Mayor
Terry Leslie