Twenty years ago, passion to conserve nature, protect wild creatures, and inspire young minds helped solve a community's flooding problems. Coaldale resident Colin Weir's commitment and ideas inspired local politicians and the community of Coaldale in southern Alberta to address the chronic problem of stormwater flooding in a unique way that restored a drained wetland. Today, the Town of Coaldale now has a multi-functional wetland area that keeps its streets free of stormwater flooding. Every summer, daily sights can include pelicans soaring overhead, mallard ducklings wiggling through the cattails after their mothers, yellow-headed blackbirds busily constructing nests, and black-crowned night herons prowling the shoreline in search of small fish.

What is unique about this wetland?

The Alberta Birds of Prey Nature Centre is a working example of what can be achieved by restoring a once-drained prairie wetland. Traditionally, urban stormwater retention sites are deep rectangular holding ponds. Embarking on a more environmentally beneficial solution, Colin Weir worked with the community and Alberta Environment to design a multi-functional stormwater retention site that incorporated a vibrant wetland in the midst of cleared and drained agricultural land. Stormwater management projects like these were a pioneering effort in the 1980s.

Approximately sixty years ago, the site was a natural wetland that was drained for agricultural production. But the 1960s to 1980s saw surface water runoff become a growing problem as agricultural and urban development expanded.

To deal with the chronic flooding, the Town of Coaldale purchased the seventy-acre site and designated it for stormwater retention.

Today, the restored wetland now serves the function of collecting stormwater during peak periods of precipitation. While some water is absorbed into the ground, most surplus runoff water is gradually released during peak periods of precipitation while providing a natural area for birds to stop during migration or inhabit year round. To ensure the environmental productivity of the wetland, the St. Mary's Irrigation District provides water through its distribution canals during low precipitation periods of late summer.

In addition the benefits of the restored prairie wetlands, the Alberta Birds of Prey Nature Centre provides other benefits including a birds of prey rescue facility, wildlife education facility, and a municipal park with day-use picnic facility.

"When I was younger, public interest in bird watching and nature conservation wasn't as mainstream and accessible as it is today. I was looking for nature-based learning opportunities as well as inspirational mentorship, but there just wasn't much available. Consequently I now derive the most inspiration for making sure today's young people have this opportunity. The most satisfaction for me comes from seeing the enjoyment of young people exploring our facility, both the wetlands and the raptors we care for. It is important we restore, protect, and maintain places like this for the young people here in Alberta."

Colin Weir

Wetlands provide critical wildlife habitat, replenish groundwater supplies, reduce the intensity of flooding, and store water for drier periods of the year. Over 60% of Alberta's wetlands in southern Alberta have been drained, removing these critical services.

This project includes a number of partners including the Town of Coaldale, St Mary's Irrigation District, the City of Lethbridge, County of Lethbridge, Alberta Tourism, Alberta Environment, Alberta Fish & Wildlife Division, Ducks Unlimited, Alberta Lotteries, and more recently Fortis Alberta.

Today, the Town of Coaldale and the County of Lethbridge are exploring options to improve drainage from the area. Stormwater still periodically collects in some surrounding fields downstream of the Alberta Birds of Prey wetland area and new development in the area may create the need for additional stormwater capacity. To address the stormwater capacity issue, Alberta Environment requires the Town of Coaldale and the County of Lethbridge to conduct a study of drainage options for the Malloy basin, downstream of the Alberta Birds of Prey site. This study will be needed prior to issuing any more approvals for stormwater drainage or for new business development (Sunny South News 2008).

Expansion of wetland area is one option for the Town and County to consider that would serve multiple purposes, offering the opportunity to transform poor drainage into a larger wetland interpretive area.

The Alberta Birds of Prey Centre has provided volunteer wildlife rescue to the province since 1983. The project receives no operational subsidies from the province or local municipalities.

For more information about the Alberta Birds of Prey Nature Centre, visit: www.burrowingowl.com

Sources

Alberta Birds of Prey Centre. www.burrowingowl.com

Sunny South News. September 30, 2008. Drainage Master Plan could be in the works for town.