We are one with the land ? hold back the flood

Page 5

EDITORIAL

This week the Alberta government dismissed a call to halt the construction of the Oldman River dam despite pleas from local environment groups and Peigan Indian band members who say the flooding will destroy rare archeological sites.

This beautiful Oldman River that curls around the northern slopes of the Peigan reserve is rich in the history of the Native people who have lived and hunted in that area for thousands of years.

But when the dam is built three historical valleys will be flooded and approximately 360 historical sites which contain the treasures of thousands of years of Indian life will be covered by a deep reservoir or lost to erosion.

These irreplacable sites include buffalo jump, ancient tipi circles and burial grounds. According to a University of Calgary archeologist the project will cause the greatest loss of cultural resources in the province's history.

Yet, apart from government-funded research program to take samples from the sites, the protests of environmental groups and hundreds of individuals are being ignored.

Admittedly, there cannot be progress without some loss. But, what progress is being gained here? The government wants to spend over $350 million to build the dam that it says will benefit about 200 farmers. But, officials have failed to say where these farms are or whether these landowners even want the irrigation service. According to a 1978 Environmental Council of Alberta report there is adequate water now to service the 51,000 acres of irrigatable land if improved off-stream storage and a more efficient delivery system (canals) are developed. In other words ? the dam is not even required.

Those against the dam say a worse spot couldn't have been selected, in terms of economy and environmental/cultural loss.

Other countries are more sensitive to this kind of loss. A good example is Egypt's development of the Aswan dam which flooded many ancient Egyptian tombs and monuments. Despite the cost, the Egyptian government removed many of the ancient carvings and placed them above the flood area. Although there were some losses, much of the area's history was saved for future generations.

In Alberta we have a government that either just doesn't care or doesn't have the vision to make far-sighted decisions to preserve our culture.

These historical and irreplaceable objects cannot be assessed in dollar figures and they cannot be counted, analyzed or sold. They are special and a part of this land. Trust the government to ignore the value of a heritage site in favor of a senseless project to benefit a small number of people ? all in the name of progress.