Flood mitigation work could be performed on the Red Deer River before this spring, according to Ken Hughes, the minister of Alberta Municipal Affairs.
“We have a lot of engineering work going on to make sure that we actually do the right thing and build berms in the right places in ways that don't affect people negatively downstream or across stream,” said Hughes during a stop in Sundre Friday.
“To ensure that we have these berms built as quickly as we can, so that to the extent possible, we can mitigate against potential floods in the spring and certainly in the long haul as well.”
While in Sundre on Friday Hughes met with mayor Terry Leslie and Sundre councillors, as well as Mountain View County Reeve Bruce Beattie, to discuss flood mitigation measures.
“I'm very confident that we will be able to move relatively quickly here in Sundre and get stuff done. I can tell you the money is committed so that's not a problem. The town and the county are working with us very closely, with the engineers. We're sharing information completely,” he said.
“The goal for all of us is that we do the right thing. That we do the work based upon the best science, the best engineering that we can get done, without letting this drag on too long. We also have a real sense of urgency and a commitment to doing the right thing for Sundre.”
Hughes was born in High River and has spent several years of his life around Alberta's rivers. He said there is a lot of mitigation work that needs to be performed throughout the province.
“I've seen floods. I grew up in southern Alberta. I've hiked these rivers, I've ridden on horseback all through the headwaters of many of the rivers,” he said.
“And so I find it's a really interesting and challenging assignment to try and ensure that we build all the mitigation that we can as quickly as we can.”
Each community affected by the floods in 2013 requires different flood mitigation measures, he said.
“In each community there are different needs and the challenge is making sure that we have a really good understanding of the flood pathways, how these rivers have changed. Particularly after last year, some of these rivers changed dramatically,” he said.
“Flood mitigation work in Sundre is very important to the government of Alberta because like many other communities, Sundre has some special risk factors that are manageable. These are manageable risks. One can't defend against all possibilities with the rivers in Alberta but you can do work that protects you against most of the risk and that's what our goal is.
“As soon as we're confident that we know exactly what the right engineering answer is we will be moving forward as quickly as possible.”
