THEBACHA/FORT SMITH - A Town of Hay River committee looking for ways to lessen the impact of spring flooding heard from community residents on March 17.

Bev Gibb and Coun. Ken Latour, members of the Town of Hay River's Flood Mitigation Committee, heard suggestions at a public meeting on March 17. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

About 40 people attended a public meeting held by the Flood Mitigation Committee, and offered a variety of suggestions.

One common theme was to return to some past methods used to ease the occasional moderate to severe flooding when the Hay River breaks up each spring.

The most often heard suggestion was to dredge the mouth of the Hay River to make it easier for ice to escape into Great Slave Lake.

The meeting was told the federal government stopped dredging in the mid-1990s in a cost-cutting move, and the dredging equipment was basically given to the town, which then sold it.

Town resident Rick Groenewegen expressed support for dredging.

"I believe it's the right way to go," said Groenewegen, who noted the dredging equipment in still in Hay River and could be pressed into service.

However, Mayor Kelly Schofield is not sold on dredging.

"I don't think dredging with 100 per cent certainty is the only answer," Schofield said.

The mayor said he would want a professional opinion on dredging and wouldn't want the town to spend millions of dollars on a whim.

Coun. Ken Latour, the committee chairperson, said it will look into dredging.

"The big issue with dredging is the cost," he said, adding it would be a major expense for the town.

Long-time Vale Island resident Jean Carter responded that getting flooded is a big cost for island residents.

"I do feel the island is worth taking those measures," she said. "I think the island has been neglected."

Carter also brought up the past practice of drilling holes in the ice to weaken it in advance of spring breakup.

"Since we've stopped that, that's when we've started to have problems," she said.

The practice of drilling holes ended in the mid-1990s, while blasting the ice has not been done since the late 1980s.

Schofield wondered about a possible connection between flooding and pressure ridges in the ice on Great Slave Lake, noting there seems to be more flooding when the pressure ridges are close to the mouth of the river.

Information presented by Latour showed there has been significant high water a dozen or so times since 1904, resulting in moderate to severe flooding in the West Channel and/or East Channel, and even occasionally in New Town.

Vale Island resident Jim Constable suggested that, whatever the town decides to do, it should seek funding from the federal government.

There are a Canadian Coast Guard base and Department of Fisheries and Oceans offices in Hay River, he noted. "The feds want to spend money on the North."

The six-member committee, which consists of town residents and two councillors, was created in August.

"Our mandate is to explore any long-term options we have as a town to mitigate the effects of flooding," said Latour.

The committee hopes to make recommendations to town council by June.

"Really at this stage we're collecting information," Latour said.

Schofield noted the town has allocated $30,000 in this year's budget for engineers to help study the flooding problem.

Money was also allocated to improve drainage in Old Town.