Dear editor:
It is time we recognized the eastern slopes’ greatest asset is not timber, but water resources, namely water production, storage and regulation of flow.
Deforestation leads to loss of ecological function and increased jeopardy of drought and flood. We must protect eastern slopes’ forests to ensure adequate water resources for people and agriculture downstream, while regulating flow through natural means — forest cover and riparian vegetation — thereby protecting infrastructure and economy from the worst effects of future floods.
Increasing frequency of extreme weather calls for precautionary decision-making.
Otherwise, land uses would exacerbate the effects of severe weather. Yet timber harvest in the Ghost Valley is based on data gathered before the floods of 2005 and 2013.
Albertans spent billions to repair flooded infrastructure. We may yet shell out for costly-engineered solutions to flooding.
Why not let nature work on our behalf by leaving forest cover in place on our eastern slopes?
Sharon MacDonald
