First, I would like to thank the organizers of the evening and I especially would thank them for not allowing the passions of the many attendees to run over making it a highly informative session.
I am a resident overlooking the river above the first falls and conclude, in the wake of the meeting, that a major modification to our river should not be allowed by our Federal, Provincial and Municipal authorities.
Indeed, the most expensive components of the described project may not even be necessary to achieve the stated goals of the Owners. I do support and encourage the modernization of the flashboards….in the current position at the top of the falls….including (and especially) a repair and modernization of the two Thoburn Mill dams, while maintaining their current historical appearance and ensuring some levels of continuous compensation flow for the aesthetics as well as the cleansing of the tailrace below the building and under the Riverwalk.
Putting aside the desires of the engineers to conceive the biggest and the best plan I cannot help but ask……If the same effort was put into a simple replacement of the presently installed and, as they state, aging generation machinery, what level of power could be generated? What would be the comparative cost? What would be the payback period? And, what profitability would still be realized by Enerdu while eliminating the broad and yet unknown impact on our river?
Bruce Attfield