Wapiti River bank stabilization construction. Photo/Aquatera/Web

By Courtney Almeida

Wapiti River Advisory

Aquatera issues advisory to protect water infrastructure

May 13, 2019 | 5:30 AM

Aquatera is asking boaters and ATV motorists for help to protect the current infrastructure in place next to the Wapiti River. The river acts as a main water source within the region and provides drinkable water to more that 80,000 residents.

Three soil bioengineering techniques were implemented over the Fall of 2018 to help prevent continued erosion and protect water infrastructure. The company was given $1.3 million from the Alberta Community Resilence Program, through an application submitted by the County of Grande Prairie, to cover the costs of the work.

Dense Live Staking, Live Gravel Bar Staking and Rough and Loose Soil Treatments were all completed.

Aquatera also worked to stabilize riverbanks in an effort to manage water flow, directing it towards the South river channel.

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“The Wapiti River does have a lot of erosion that occurs naturally along its banks and particularly in the area of our river pump house and the sedimentation ponds at the river, which we use to store water and settle out the bulk of the solids, those are fairly close to the riverbank and that North riverbank has been eroding towards those facilities over the last number of years,” says Ralph Wohlgemuth, Engineering Services Manager at Aquatera.

As a result of the completed projects, Aquatera is asking boaters to use the South channel of the river so that vegetation can have the best chance of success through the restoration period.

ATV motorists are also being asked not to use the trail along the top of the North bank area to support bank stabilization.

“If we have boats going over those trees, there isn’t really ATV access onto that gravel bar because of how the bank structure is right now and so the ATVs are less of a concern right in that area, but the boaters certainly would be. We don’t want to damage those trees,” said Wohlgemuth.

Erosion poses a threat to the community as water restrictions could come into effect within days, if water is unable to be pulled from the Wapiti River and storage ponds must be used as a last resort.

This would ultimately effect not only the City of Grande Prairie, but the Town of Sexsmith, parts of the County of Grande Prairie and eventually, the Town of Wembley too.

Dense Live Staking is described by Aquatera in a release as a technique which, “involves the installation of sections of Willow and Balsam Poplar into the steep bank slope above the storage ponds which will regenerate to remove excess soil moisture and provide soil stabilization through their root network.”

Live Gravel Bar Staking, “is used to mitigate erosion by decreasing water velocities and encourage sediment decomposition in the north channel.” This process was used to divert water flow from the North channel to the South channel.

Rough and Loose Soil Treatment was used to, “control erosion and create ideal conditions to promote re-vegetation and reduce ponding and run-off,” into the riverbank.

“By inserting Willow and Balsam Poplar into the ground, we have been able to trap debris and disrupt the flow of water, resulting in the deposition of sediment and the stabilization of the riverbank,” said Wohlgemuth.

He notes that, “the Wapiti is a relatively young river in geological terms, so it’s finding its path. Our banks are relatively unstable, they slide and that changes things, so its pretty normal for the Wapiti.”

The ask to avoid the area is a short-term one at the moment but Wohlgemuth explains that, “if this treatment in that area works as we hope it does, the North channel will actually close off, so it won’t actually be a flowing channel at some point in the future, so this is really an indefinite request.”