How to decommission Springbank Dam to be discussed at public information centre Wednesday

The One River Master Plan Environmental Assessment (EA) is moving into its second stage.

The future of the Springbank Dam was the focus of the first stage of the assessment.

Now that decommissioning the dam has been approved, stage two of the process is going ahead and city staff wants public input.

Two public information centres (PIC) are being held to give details and hear feedback on the second stage. The first is Wednesday, June 6 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Museum London.

READ MORE: Decommission the dam: London city council unanimously votes to say goodbye to Springbank Dam

“We will be asking the public for input on the three different work streams that are now part of the One River Master Plan,” said Ashley Rammeloo, One River project manager.

“[People will see options for the] decommissioning of Springbank Dam. We have river management strategies to talk about and also what design elements people would like to see incorporated with the back to the river inaugural project at the Forks of the Thames,” she said.

Council voted unanimously to decommission the dam back in January, but whether it will be fully or partially decommissioned is still unknown.

“We can take out the full thing, but it is going to be more expensive because it is a lot more equipment and so on,” said Rammeloo.

“Would you rather spend less money and leave it basically the way it is, but still potentially have some structure in the river, or do you want it fully gone recognizing that’s going to cost more,” she said.

The president of the Thames River Anglers Association, Robert Huber, wants the dam gone.

“The reason for that is, first of all, it’s actually really cost effective to do that. It’s a one time cost — you get in there and you rip everything out — then you don’t have those ongoing maintenance costs year over year over year. It [would also] prevent any further blockages,” he said.

Huber’s main concern is the dam doors.

“They are about a two-foot lift off the ground and so even as water travels over that it creates turbidity, it increases the velocity of the river,” he said.

“It creates passage issues for smaller fish like darters and certain species of suckers that need to move up and down that area.”

If the city wants to turn the dam into a bridge or something of the sort, Huber said he’s happy to support that plan as long as the doors at the bottom are removed and there’s nothing getting in the way of fish passage.

Besides fully decommissioning Springbank Dam, Huber had a few other ideas for how the Thames could be improved.

“We really need to make sure there are better places for people to park, launch canoes, launch kayaks,” he said.

“[A place where people can] really get down there and get into the river and have a good time. Even if they’re just going out to walk around or fish. Some of those areas are in pretty rough shape right now,” said Huber.

READ MORE: London’s civic works committee says goodbye to the Springbank Dam

The goal is to create harmony between those using the river recreationally and the creatures that call the river their home said Rammeloo.

“We want to make sure we’re [enjoying the river] in a way that respects the environment, respects the species at risk. We really balance that out so that we protect those habitats, but we allow people to enjoy this beautiful feature we have as well,” she said.

A second PIC will be held in September to present the results of the evaluation and the recommended solutions.