Cougar Creek
To view a video of the presentation click here.
This page contains information on the Debris Retention Structure and will be updated on a regular basis during construction - keeping you up to date on impacts in the area.
Construction Impacts - Updated March 23, 2023
- Work on the project has re-started.
- A permits for night work has been approved for the project. Vehicle movements in the creek will be limited between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. and all efforts to minimize noise on site will be taken.
- The Lady MacDonald hiking trail remains closed.
- Cougar Creek Canyon remains closed for the duration of construction.
- The following closures are currently in place:
Long-Term Mitigation: Debris Flood Retention Structure
What will it look like?
- 34m high rock-filled embankment dam (not constructed out of concrete)
- Upstream and downstream faces covered by soil and seeded
- 20m wide rock-cut spillway on the east abutment that includes wildlife egress areas
What will it do?
- Existing channel and downstream culverts can accommodate 50-60 m3/s, but a natural event on the creek could easily reach 80 m3/s peak flow with 20% debris (fine sediment to large boulders, including gravel and woody debris)
- The Structure reduces peak flow to 45 m3/s. It further reduces the quantity of debris and removes the larger debris
- The risk to downstream private and commercial properties, as well as infrastructure, is therefore reduced to an acceptable level
- There is no water retention during regular operation (dry dam) – water flows freely through a low-level outlet
- A high capacity spillway is required to ensure flows can bypass the structure during an extreme flood event
Contact Us
For more information on the project email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or sign up to our mailing list below
Frequently Asked Questions
You can watch the November 15, 2022 update to Council here, the presentation starts at the 1:01:00 mark.
You can view an update to Council on the impacts of the June 2022 rainfall event on the project here, the presentation starts at the 2:30:00 mark.
Alberta Parks and the Town of Canmore considered constructing an alternative route around the closure to access Cougar Creek Canyon. Due to the challenging steep terrain on Lady MacDonald and Grotto Mountain, Alberta Parks determined that closing access is the best alternative for ensuring public safety.
1. The Construction Environmental Management Plan, that describes principles, best practices and specific requirements during the construction of the project; and
2. The Water Quality Management and Monitoring Environmental Protection Plan, that describes the water monitoring requirements during construction of the project.
Moreover, the contractor is required to submit to the Town and its consultants several work plans and environmental protection plans (EPPs) that need to follow the requirements of the guiding documents described above. Examples of plans required for the project: Care of Water work plan, Erosion and Sediment Control EPP, Wildlife and Human Conflict EPP, Invasive Species Control EPP, etc.