Epcor Solar Farm Legal Challenge Fundraiser December 2020 Update

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The Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition is now in the process of filing a legal claim against the City of Edmonton to oppose its recent rezoning of 99 acres of river valley parkland for an Epcor industrial solar plant. Our legal documents were submitted to the Court of Queen’s Bench on Monday, December 7th.

We have a river valley bylaw precisely to protect our river valley from commercial, industrial, and public utilities threats. Solar energy is, of course, good in the right location – like on rooftops, landfills, and brownfield sites. But this is rare aspen parkland habitat that is heavily used by wildlife, and a regionally significant wildlife corridor; it is not an essential, nor appropriate, location for an industrial solar power plant.

This land is already sequestering carbon, purifying the air, cooling the city, preventing flooding and drought, and providing habitat to plants and animals. The project would disturb the plants and soil with pilings for 45,000 solar panels, preventing the land’s full functioning as a carbon sink. It would also include the cutting of trees. The panels would be located behind a security fence, meaning that an area the size of 26 football fields would be lost as habitat, and a pinch-point “alley” approximately 1.5 km long would be created in the already narrow wildlife corridor. According to the province’s own solar guidelines, large solar projects do not belong in river valleys because they are a hazard to water birds, which tend to mistake the panels for water and die from collisions or stranding after impact, as they require water to take flight again.

The city has an obligation to respect the river valley bylaw. And that respect is now critical in this time of climate crisis and biodiversity crisis. According to a recent UN report, modernity has wiped out 60% of wildlife populations since 1970, and one million species are now at risk of extinction. The greatest cause for these losses is the destruction of natural habitat. By simply locating the solar panels elsewhere, we can work toward our city’s climate goals and preserve our river valley, which is so valuable ecologically and to the people of Edmonton. The ERVCC is standing up for protection of our river valley against this non-essential industrial use.

The ERVCC is crowd-sourcing funding for the legal challenge. The river valley matters to all of us, and so we are counting on Edmontonians to contribute to our campaign. We all need to stand up for what we love, or we are going to lose it.

Donations can be sent by e-transfer to info@ervcc.com.

Thank you and take care,

Kristine Kowalchuk
Chair, ERVCC

Public Information Notice - River Valley Legal Challenge

Public Information Notice - River Valley Legal Challenge
This information notice is not necessarily endorsed by the board.

From: kristine kowalchuk <kristinekowalchuk@gmail.com>
Subject: River Valley Legal Challenge
Date: December 23, 2020 at 11:30:33 AM MST
To: Kristine Kowalchuk <kristinekowalchuk@gmail.com>


Hello,

I am sending this email out to everyone I know who cares about Edmonton’s river valley. This is the only such email you will receive from me on this topic.

As you might have heard, the Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition, which I chair, has filed a legal challenge of city council’s 7-6 vote to rezone 99 acres of river valley parkland for Epcor's industrial solar farm. The ERVCC is concerned not only with the loss of important river valley habitat and parkland that this decision entails, and the opening of the river valley to industrial development that it represents, but also by the precedent established in allowing Epcor to bypass municipal regulations. This is alarming considering our water, waste water, drainage, and power are all controlled by Epcor—and it is a departure from the reassurances the city and Epcor gave to Edmontonians that transferring these utilities to their control required Epcor to remain subject to city regulations. 

This is thus about the river valley, and it is also about governance of things as important as our water. 

The Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition has taken a leap of faith that the people of Edmonton care so much about protecting our river valley—which he have inherited from all the protectors before us—that they will contribute to the legal challenge. We also know that Edmontonians do not appreciate the city breaking its commitments that protect the interests of Edmontonians. This legal challenge is an insistence that the city act in the best interest of the people.

We are counting on Edmontonians to support this important work. So far, we have raised $9500. But we need to raise at least $35,000. If we do not raise this money, since ERVCC is a non-profit, it will fall to me and a couple of other individuals to pay this bill. If that happens, we will not be able to continue this work of standing up for the river valley and for the public interest. 

If you are in a position to do so, please consider contributing to this legal fund. You can send a donation by e-transfer to info@ervcc.com or you can send a cheque to: 

ERVCC c/o
Jaynne Carre
37 Wolf Willow Crescent
Edmonton AB T5T 1T1

Please also share this message with anyone you know who loves the river valley.

If you would like to read more about this issue, here is a recent article I wrote for the Edmonton Journal on the topic: https://edmontonjournal.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-solar-energy-and-protecting-biodiversity-arent-at-odds?fbclid=IwAR0GdA4CuHH2yMp1PX_t8IPD_ee6y4cYAPfCgpz43x_WFYFoeUSaDmBKUgA The photo does not do the land justice; it is a beautiful meadow surrounded by forest. 

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Lastly, just a reminder that if the city says no to this project, that does not mean saying no to solar—the city has directed Epcor to source 10% of its energy from renewables, so Epcor must do so—it will simply have to look outside of our river valley. And in fact, Epcor has already explored other options and admits they have alternatives.

Thank you very much, and wishing you a very happy holidays,

Kristine

Communications between the Rossdale Executive, City Hall and David Shepherd regarding the camp

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Date Description Action
2020-08-06 1. Letter from Terry Pandza to Scott McKeen and Scott’s Reply.
2020-09-21 2. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-09-29 3. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-10 4. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-14 5. Letter from Terry Pandza to Mayor and Councillors
2020-10-16 6. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-10-20 7. Letter from Terry Pandza to Scott McKeen
2020-10-29 8. Note from David Shepherd’s office
2020-11-12 9. City Statement on Camp Closure
2020-11-12 10. City NET Update
2020-12-04 11. Email from Scott McKeen

Announcing the Rossdale Incident Reporter

Dear neighbour,

Neighbours are the eyes and ears of the community and community becomes stronger when we all share information.

Today we are launching the Rossdale Incident Reporter, a tool to capture and share incident information. This information will be used for:

• supporting the police with non urgent information such as suspicious persons,

• assisting neighbourhood watch,

• forming an incident record, complete with photos and videos from within our community

• and helping to get resources allocated to our community.

When you experience an incident or encounter suspicious activity, please access the Rossdale Incident Reporter form to make a report. It only takes one minute. Activities can be entered retro-actively to January 2020. Regardless of how minor you think an incident is, many small pieces of information form a big picture.

Access the site at: www.rossdaleconnect.ca.

This incident log does not replace reporting to police, fire, or 311 and we encourage you to continue reporting incidents there as well.

For more information regarding this initiative, please contact me at rossdalekaren@gmail.com.

Karen

Lock your doors - vehicles, houses and garage doors!

Lock your doors – VEHICLES, HOUSES AND GARAGE DOORS!

There has been an increase in entries to vehicles, garages and houses in the city. The majority of these entries and thefts were through unlocked doors. Please remember to always keep your doors locked and valuables (including keys) out of plain sight. It is also recommended that you bring in your garage door opener if you park outside.

The police need your assistance. By locking your doors you minimize the chances of becoming a victim. We ask that if you see any suspicious persons, vehicles or activity, report it! Let’s all watch out for one another!

City of Edmonton Playground Program Survey

The City of Edmonton is completing a five year review of the summer and year round playground programs and we welcome your valuable input!

The primary topics of this survey include:

Site allocation

Service Level determination - Extended hour | Standard | Pop Up Play

Primary Outcomes of the Program

The survey should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete.

Please click HERE And feel free to share with anyone who has participated in the Green Shack Program

🎃The survey closes October 31, 2019 👻

Thank you for your ongoing support!

Elena R T Londeau BCOMM

MANAGEMENT SUPERVISOR, NEIGHBOURHOOD RECREATION EXPERIENCES

CITIZEN SERVICES  |  COMMUNITY AND RECREATION FACILITIES

11808 St. Albert Trail | Edmonton AB | T5L 4G4

tel 780-496-2989 




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