To combat high waters in low areas in the town of Killarney, the municipality has built a retention pond just north of the Shamrock Centre.

In the past, heavy rains resulted in high water levels, specifically affecting areas directly west of the Killarney Place Mall and near the Legion Plaza building.

Helping to divert flood waters north to a retention pond by following the water’s natural flow, is the means behind the project.  However, there is more going into the plan than just avoiding high water in downtown Killarney.

Chief Administrative Officer for the Municipality of Killarney-Turtle Mountain, Karen Patterson, says the building of the retention pond is almost complete, however there is still some additional work that they’re wanting to do in that corner of town.

“We’re hoping to extend our walking trails out there and possibly have it as somewhat of an outdoor recreation area where people might be able to skate on,” she explains. “We also have a bit of a hill there that we’re thinking residents might be able to use as a toboggan run,” she adds.

The second goal of the project is to further develop the new Industrial Park on the north edge of town.  Water tended to sit on the low spots, unable to drain off.  The project addresses this problem so all excess water will now be drained into the retention pond.

The municipality partnered with the Pembina Valley Watershed District to draw on their expertise for both designing the pond, as well as to assist in acquiring funding.

The goal was to design a ‘treatment wetland’ retention pond by bringing in native plants to the area to build a healthy habitat for marshland flora and fauna.

“The Pembina Valley Watershed District has more experience when it comes to building retention ponds, and with the change in the environment, retaining water is key,” notes Patterson.

The installation of a gate allows the municipality to control the outflow as it affects landowners downstream, eventually making its way to the Pembina River.