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Respondents were asked whether they supported the Springbank option chosen by the NDP government (which initially opposed the plan during last year’s provincial election), over a dam farther west in the McLean Creek area, suggesting the Springbank project would be more expensive and force property owners out.

Ryan Robinson, a landowner in the affected area who speaks for Don’t Damn Springbank, said the group didn’t flinch about stating the preferred plan would be more expensive than McLean Creek, noting the scope of affected land in the government’s own documents have nearly quadrupled, from 690 hectares to nearly 2,750 hectares.

“There’s no doubt given how much the project has been increasing in size it will be way more expensive,” he said.

“I think the more time that goes by the more likely it is the government will have to consider the McLean Creek option.”

Government of Alberta

According to the poll, only seven per cent of respondents believe Springbank is the best option, while 21 per cent favour a water-diversion tunnel under Calgary’s Glenmore Reservoir — a plan long ago shelved by both the city and province — as the best option behind McLean Creek.

Some 12 per cent of respondents said they were unsure of the best option, with another five per cent saying they didn’t like any of the three proposed options.

Brenda Leeds-Binder, with the Calgary River Communities Action Group, joined Mason in dismissing the poll, noting those who commissioned it represent a very small group compared with the number of Calgary residents who could be spared a repeat of the devastating 2013 deluge.