Feasibility Study to Overcome Hurdles by Integrating LID/Reuse into Edmonton Energy and Technology Park Stormwater Plan

The Edmonton Energy and Technology Park (EETP) is an eco-industrial park area with areas for medium and heavy industrial use, commercial use, and research and development uses. Although the City of Edmonton has been working on lowering the barriers to developing the EETP for several years, stormwater management remains the main obstacle. The city’s EETP project team is seeking a balanced and feasible plan that is palatable to developers, meets the requirements to protect Horsehills Creek from further erosion and aligns with the EETP’s sustainable infrastructure objectives. Phase 1 of this project includes a concept plan to stabilize Horsehills Creek downstream of the EETP lands, development of a new flow regime for the stabilized creek, and a concept level stormwater management plan for the EETP lands upstream. In phase 2 the city will examine the feasibility of further integrating low impact development (LID) and stormwater reuse into the EETP stormwater management plan in a way that is acceptable to all stakeholders. Water balance modeling will be used to compare and evaluate current climate conditions and existing site infrastructure, taking future conditions and planned infrastructure changes into account. This project will address previous development barriers by involving all affected internal and external stakeholders and integrating developer and community interests. The resulting stormwater plan will reduce erosive pressure on Horsehills Creek for the long term by reducing runoff through innovative stormwater reuse options and LID. This will improve the quality of the water entering the North Saskatchewan River south of the site. This project is aligned with Edmonton’s Strategic Plan (2019–2028), which identifies climate resilience as one of four strategic goals. Innovative aspect(s): This project uses a new approach to stakeholder engagement that involves different municipal departments that have not traditionally been a part of stormwater management planning discussions along with other stakeholders early in the process. This should balance economic and risk-mitigation interests in the conversation on sustainability and resilience in development. Replicability: The lessons learned from this project have the potential to be applied across the country. (Project description from original funding application)