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CALGARY — Cutting a straight line through several suburban neighbourhoods, emptying its cargo downstream of the downtown core, the tunnel would divert 500 cubic metres of water per second away from crucial office buildings, electrical transformers and countless homes and neighbourhoods.

It is a massive project, and just one of three proposed to help mitigate or lessen the ravaging effects of another flood in the city’s core.

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The once treasured rivers that meet in Calgary’s core have, a year after the flood, become the focus of rising anxiety and, increasingly, prophylactic spending by a skittish government intent on avoiding a repeat of the devastation.

In addition to the tunnel, a reservoir and a dam have also been proposed. The tunnel alone would cost an estimated $500 million. That’s in addition to the $445 million worth of damage done to the city’s infrastructure.

It’s an enormous sum, even for a wealthy city. And all to protect against another 1 in 100 year flood.