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Province lends a hand to wetlands

Wetlands damaged by rapid waters that swept through Turner Valley during the 2013 flood are getting the attention they need this year.
Turner Valley mayor Kelly Tuck stands beside the Sheep River, which is receiving more than $135,000 in Provincial funding for post-flood repairs to riparian areas.
Turner Valley mayor Kelly Tuck stands beside the Sheep River, which is receiving more than $135,000 in Provincial funding for post-flood repairs to riparian areas.

Wetlands damaged by rapid waters that swept through Turner Valley during the 2013 flood are getting the attention they need this year.

The Province announced more than $135,000 to restore a damaged creek riparian area and develop pilot study areas in the flood plain for the Sheep River sub-watershed in Turner Valley last month.

The Towns of Black Diamond, Turner Valley and Bow River Basin Council applied for the funding last year.

“I’m very pleased to hear that it’s going ahead,” said Turner Valley mayor Kelly Tuck. “What I like about this is the comments of bringing community involvement with it. We will have an engagement forum with the residents.”

The announcement is part of the Province’s $15 million commitment to environmental organizations and municipalities to restore or enhance more than 500 hectares of wetlands and about 36 kilometres of riparian areas, mostly in southern Alberta. Projects range from creating wetlands and restoring shorelines to protecting communities from natural disasters.

The Province approved $13,255 to restore a damaged creek riparian area along the Sheep River in Turner Valley with a focus on community involvement to improve awareness around the importance of riparian areas.

Another $125,000 was approved for the Bow River Basin Council to develop pilot study areas in the flood plain of the Sheep River. The test sites will determine the best methods for riparian buffers to support future community stakeholder and community engagement.

“They are very, very sensitive areas and very important,” said Dusty Williams, with Turner Valley’s environmental services. “They hold the lower end of the food web, which is the insects and the next level that eats the insects – fish and birds. That’s their habitat and without that we’re all in trouble.”

Williams said the damaged creek riparian area in Turner Valley is one of the feeder creeks to the Sheep River and the Province’s funds will help prevent the degraded stream bank from further washing out.

“What’s happening there is because it’s washing out trees are falling into the creek and it presents blockage problems,” he said.

Williams said the dollars will fund the building of the stream bank in some areas and the planting of willow shrubs to keep the bank stable.

He added volunteers are being arranged to assist with the project, which is expected to commence in the next month or two.

In respect to the pilot study areas that will be set up in the river’s flood plain, Williams said restoration to this area is complete, yet there is a need to set up testing for water volumes and quality.

Kyle Fawcett, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, has been working with both Turner Valley and Black Diamond since the 2013 flood and said the funding is good news for the towns.

“I think this is a good opportunity to repair some of the riparian areas along the Sheep River to make the river more healthy and allow the natural system to retain and hold water and create healthier ecosystems as well,” he said. “I believe that these projects achieve both flood mitigation goals as well as ecological benefits.”

Funding is provided through the three-year, $21 million Watershed Resiliency and Restoration Program announced last summer to create healthy watersheds and protect communities from flood and drought by improving natural watershed functions.

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