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Prince Edward Islanders heard a lot about South Moresby and the

artist and naturalist:

rest of the Queen Charlotte Islands as conservationists and native groups teamed up to save the unique area. And the proposed developments at Greenwich and Boughton Island have become hot news items in our own Friends of the Oldman River in Alberta are now fighting a

battle to save the last wild river in the South shed,

Saskatchewan water— and are looking for support from across the country.

Starting as springs and seeps in the Rockies,

through the foothills of southwestern Alberta and carves its way into

The planned Three Rivers Dam will flood the Oldman,

the Oldman River runs

ruining some of the best fishing areas in

3 EN EFITS..- what benefits?

Why is the Three Rivers dam being built? Here is what the government says:

0 a dependable supply of water, in an area

where demand for water often outweighs available supply.

From 70 to 90% of the water use in the Oldman River basin is for irrigation farming. At the time when the darn was first proposed. only a third of the water taken from the river even made it to the fields. The ditches of the Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District were among the most inefficient in the province.

In other words. there no shortage of water, not even in drought years. The pro« blem is waste.

Farmers are not charged for the water they use. but simply for its delivery. There is no economic incentive for them to conserve.

Albertans are being asked to pay half a billion.

dollars to subsidize inefficiency. storage of water during spring nrnoff, for gradual relase later in the summer.

Several off-stream reservoirs are in the pro- cess of being expanded (also at our expense) to hold spring runoff. The Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District main canal is being doubled in size. specifically to catch the spring runoff and improve efficiency.

Considering this. and the fact that water is being badly squandered already, the Three Rivers Dam is redundant. irrigation of more than 170,000 additional acres

Alberta Environment's own rating classes only 106,000 of these acres as suitable for ir- rigation. This means that the remaining 64,000 are likely to be damaged by salt accumulation when irrigated. Soil salinity permanently ruins soil.

On average. it takes 30 years for irrigation projects to reach half their potential. This means that by the year 2020. we might see 85.6» acres of land convened from dryland

grain farming and grazing to irrigation ~ at a cost ofclose to $5000.00 per acre - with a third of that destined to be mined by salt.

Recently. Alberta Environment indicated another 108,000 acres can be irrigated near the reservoir and said that millions more acres are potentially irrigable. That would take a lot more water than is in the Oldman system. Where is the rest going to come from? it could only happen with interbasin transfer.

542 million dollar annual increase in food

production and 1700 new jobs. Since these figures are based on the 170.0(1)

acres already referred to, and include spin-off jobs that would result from most government expenditures. they are unrealistic. Even if they are accepted. this amounts to an expenditure of SZNJXJQOO per job created. It also assumes that dryland farmers will convert to irrigation. Farmers are having trouble as it is. Going fur- ther into debt for irrigation equipment hardly seems likely.

recratlonal opportunities on the reservoir.

The reservoir is in the windiest part ofthe province. Since water will be taken out all sum- trier for irrigation. there will be a 22 metre drawdown. leaving nothing but extensive mud flats. and in drier times, a dust bowl. Even Alberta Environment's own consultants con- cluded there would be major problems with recreation.

The Bighorn Dam on the North Saskat- chewan was touted as offering recreational op- portunities. It is a barren. windswept reservoir today: boating is discouraged.

Today. at no cost to the taxpayer. the Three Rivers area offers some of the finest trout fishing. big game hunting, wildlife viewing, canoeing and other recreation in southern Albena. In three years. ifthe dam is built. this unique ecosystem could all be gone.

The loss of habitat for deer and burrowing owls, and the destruction of nesting sites of prairie falcons, herons, ferruginous hawks and cliff swallows has raised the hackles of naturalists across Here's what people have had to say about the proposed dam:

"The Oldman dam is another of those huge mistakes that

will destroy another

precious piece of our natural and human heri—

tage."

Andy Russell, outdoors- man and writer: "Every- thing the Oldman repre- sents and has nourished for 10,000 years is in

jeopardy. If future

generations are to be in—

heritors and not just

survivors, we have an ob-

ligation to act with

firmness and utter final-

ity in its protection.

There is no legacy in all

nature to compare to a

free—flowing river."

Friends of the Old-

man River are leading the

campaign to stop the

dam, and are convinced it

can be stopped. But they

need your support.

How can you help? Write to the Hon. Tom Siddon, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, and ask him to initiate an environ— mental assessment. Talk to local MP's and ask them to support the call for assessment. The Can- adian Environmental De- fence Fund is accepting donations (tax-deduct—

ible) to support the

Friends' work. Cheques