North Saskatchewan River water level extremely low
Boaters using motorized craft are being told to stay off the North Saskatchewan River as water levels remain extremely low. Lower than normal precipitation rates combined with slower snowmelt upstream in the mountains have caused river levels to remain lower so far this season.
River rates around the city at this time of year are expected to be around 150 cubic metres per second. Currently it is hovering around 80, meaning the river is flowing at half the rate. For paddlers, canoers, or kayakers, that means they should expect to be out longer than before or working a lot harder to get downstream with their paddles.
Colleen Walford, an Alberta Environment and Parks river forecast specialist, said the North Saskatchewan experienced its lowest flow rate in May in the past 50 years. The mountain snowpack melt is approximately two to three weeks behind schedule this year, Walford added.
"We are just a little slow this year," she said. "It'll just take some time." The river forecaster expects water levels to normalize by July. "The melt takes up to about six weeks," Walford said. More at https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/power-boaters-asked-to-stay-off-north-saskatchewan-river-due-to-low-water-levels-1.5932794
Edmonton sewer system history
The earliest sewer system in Edmonton was built in 1880 for a population of about 200. It discharged directly into the river without treatment. The first wastewater treatment plant was built in Rossdale and treated about half the wastewater produced by the city. It was shut down in 1916 to save costs during Word War 1.
Another plant was not built until 1925, this time in Riverdale. It operated until 1956, when the Gold Bar plant opened. A second plant opened in 1930 in Queen Elizabeth Park. It treated sewage until 1955, when a new plant went into operation right beside it. This plant shut down in 1972 after a pipeline was built to move wastewater from the west end of Edmonton to the Gold Bar plant.
A treatment plant opened in 1931 in Mill Creek Ravine to deal with wastewater coming from Gainer’s Meat Packing Plant, which until then was dumped directly into Mill Creek. This plant closed in 1955.
The Gold Bar Wastewater Treatment Plant opened in 1956. The advanced secondary processes were a first in western Canada at that time. Text from Living in the Shed by Billie Milholland, published by the North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance https://archive.org/details/livinginshedalbe00milh/
Rose-breasted Grosbeak a non-winter visitor
The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is one of four types of grosbeaks found in Alberta. They are stocky, medium-sized songbirds with large triangular bills. Their name comes from the Latin words gros and beccus, meaning large beaks. This name is fitting since these beautiful birds rely on their thick bills to crack open nuts and seeds.
Bursting with black, white, and rose-red, male Rose-breasted Grosbeaks are like an exclamation mark at your bird feeder or in your binoculars. Females and immatures are streaked brown and white with a bold face pattern.
They are most common in regenerating woodlands and often concentrate along forest edges and in parks. During migration, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks frequent fruiting trees to help fuel their flights to Central and South America.
Attract Rose-breasted Grosbeaks to your yard with black oil sunflower seeds in a platform, hopper, or large tube feeder. Ensure that the young get a healthy start by offering a habitat filled with native plants that attracts a steady diet of insects. Learn more at https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rose-breasted_Grosbeak/overview
Comment or contribution
Please note that articles may not reflect the position of NSRVCS. River Valley News is meant to be a clearinghouse for the wide variety of opinions and ideas about Edmonton’s River Valley. Email river valley photos, event information, comments, or questions to nsrivervalley@gmail.com
Sincerely yours,
Harvey Voogd
North Saskatchewan River Valley Conservation Society
780.691.1712