Nathan VanderKlippe
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Sep 11/02) - Local environmentalists are mad at the city for digging a trench through a peat bog near Niven Lake.

The city argues the trench was necessary to drain off excess water from a small pond near the lake. The pond drains into one of the lots in the new Niven Drive subdivision during spring melting and after heavy rainfalls, said Dennis Kefalas, the city's manager of public works.

The trench was dredged several weeks ago. The city is in the middle of preparing the way for dozens of home-builders to construct houses in the subdivision.

But some local environmentalists say there is no evidence of drain-off from the pond and are calling for the city to refill the trench.

"I've been told by some people that the number of water fowl, to their mind, has significantly decreased," said Alex Borowiecka, who is with Ecology North. "Change is inevitable, but it's how it occurs that is our concern."

Jamie Bastedo, a local naturalist and author, said the city is using "1950s tactics" in draining off the pond, which are unacceptable in an environmentally protected area.

Bastedo has written a letter voicing his concerns to the mayor and council.

He said the peat bog is layered with permafrost and ice lenses and is extremely sensitive to disturbance. The area is a habitat for numerous waterfowl, and an ideal location for bringing tourists and school groups, he said.

And the pond is typical of the area.

"There are thousands of ponds on the Canadian Shield that have no visible outflow or inflow -- they fill up with rain and empty through evaporation," he said. "There's no evidence of surface draining at all. There's nothing that could jeopardize any homes."

But the city is fighting back.

Heavy flow after rainfall

"He has no idea what he's talking about," said Kefalas. "In the springtime there's a consistent flow coming out of there. It's a brook that runs for two weeks of the year. During heavy rainfall it keeps flowing out of there until the rain stops."

Bob Boon, a civil engineer with Earthtec Canada who consults for the city, said the water level in the pond has dropped 20 to 30 centimetres since workers dug the trench.

"There was definite run-off across the subdivision," he said, noting an old ski trail where the water runs in spring. The city also plans to install a low berm on the Niven Lake side of lot 11 to prevent any further run-off from entering the subdivision. Meanwhile, a city councillor who typically lobbies for environmental caution said he was satisfied with the city's actions.

"I feel very confident that the clearing that has been done was necessary in a few cases," said Kevin O'Reilly. "What we've done is restore the original drainage into Niven Lake."