Riverside trail realignment
In November City Council approved realignment of the Riverside Trail, a well used trail that runs between the Riverside Golf Course and the North Saskatchewan River. It connects Dawson Bridge and the paved multi-use trail leading to Capilano Bridge.
In recent years, the Riverside Trail has been damaged in several locations due to high water events, which caused bank erosion, top-of-bank trail instability and slumping. As a result, the trail has been closed to the public for several years. Pedestrians and cyclists have continued using the trail despite closure signage being in place.
It is anticipated that future high-water events will further limit trail functionality in the affected areas. The proposed trail realignment and other rehabilitation work in seven locations will address the trail impacts resulting from the erosion activity and ensure that Edmontonians will be able to enjoy the trail safely into the future.
Learn about the trail realignment and its environmental impact assessment at
https://pub-edmonton.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=69182
Support legal challenge against solar farm
The Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition has filed a legal challenge against city council’s 7-6 decision to rezone 99 acres of river valley parkland for Epcor’s industrial solar power plant. ERVCC is crowd-sourcing funding for the legal challenge and has raised over $12,000. Donations can be sent by e-transfer to info@ervcc.com
They are asking a judge to determine if this project should have been subject to the river valley bylaw. This bylaw, created to protect our river valley when it is “threatened by commercial and industrial uses, as well as by civic uses such as public utilities,” states that major public facilities in the river valley must be deemed “essential” by council. Council did not do this. Instead, they considered the project private, even though Epcor received Alberta Utilities Commission approval as a “municipal subsidiary.”
We have a river valley bylaw precisely to protect our river valley from commercial, industrial, and public utilities threats. This location is rare aspen parkland habitat that is heavily used by wildlife, and a regionally significant wildlife corridor; it is not an essential, nor appropriate, location for an industrial solar power plant.
The project would disturb the plants and soil with pilings for 45,000 solar panels, preventing the land’s full functioning as a carbon sink. It would also include the cutting of trees. The panels would be located behind a security fence, meaning that an area the size of 26 football fields would be lost as habitat, and a pinch-point alley approximately 1.5 km long would be created in the already narrow wildlife corridor.
According to the province's own solar guidelines, large solar projects do not belong in river valleys because they are a hazard to water birds, which tend to mistake the panels for water and die from collisions or stranding after impact, as they require water to take flight again. More information at https://www.ervcc.com/
Nominations open for council and mayor
City Council needs people committed to conserving and preserving Edmonton’s greatest asset, our river valley. As of January 4, anyone wanting to be the next mayor, or one of 12 city councillors may now submit their papers.
The nomination process for the October 18 municipal election runs until September 20. Mayoral candidates must submit a $500 deposit and a form with 100 signatures of support. Councillor candidates need 25 signatures and must pay a $100 fee.
CBC reports that Mayor Don Iveson, and Councillors Ben Henderson and Michael Walters have announced they are not running for re-election. Information on the election and for individuals interested in running for office is at https://www.edmonton.ca/city_government/edmonton-elections.aspx
River valley contributions or question
If you have a river valley concern or question, contact us at nsrivervalley@gmail.com
Your friends and neighbours can sign up for this newsletter at https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/
If you have a photo, information, news or event about Edmonton’s river valley and think it should be in this newsletter, email it to nsrivervalley@gmail.com
Sincerely yours,
Harvey Voogd
North Saskatchewan River Valley Conservation Society
nsrivervalley@gmail.com
https://www.edmontonrivervalley.org/
Facebook @NSRVCS
Instagram @nsrvcs