In advance of the 2013 spring freshet (where there was flooding – by far, the highest in memory), Ministry of Natural Resources staff did not draw down the water level of Lake Muskoka as much as they could have. This would indicate that the magnitude of high-flow events cannot be predicted.
This is a concern as during the construction of the proposed hydro-electric generating station at the Bala falls, the north channel would need to be obstructed by a cofferdam. And as we have shown here, historical flow data for the Moon River shows there would only be a short 15-week period (and this only during the lower-flow period of the summer) when this obstruction would not risk flooding Lake Muskoka.
We have therefore sent this letter to the Minister of Natural Resources, requesting a peer-reviewed report showing the construction could be done without risk to private property, public infrastructure, or area businesses.