Lighting Up

Leighton Ringrose (left) reaches high with a couple of sticks taped together that has notches cut in the end to put up lights on front yard trees on Saturday afternoon amid unusually warm temperatures. Meanwhile just down the street, Carl Heck (not shown) appeared from his house next door with the ladder to help neighbour Debbie Bolz as she prepares lights to run across the eaves on the front of her house. Bolz had earlier helped the Hecks with their lights to see that they were running properly. The News camera returned an hour later—at dusk to photograph the colourful results that can be found printed on page 32 of this week's paper. ©Provost News Photos.

Oil Company Staying Clear of Sensitive Archaeological Finds During Nearby Pipeline Project
Pengrowth Corporation is working on an oil pipeline project near the Bodo archaeological finds that will keep operations away from sensitive grounds.

Pengrowth has already deactivated pipelines that cross the Bodo archaeological locality, (primarily a site called FaOm-1).  However, they need to put in pipelines from their wells located on the south side of the site, because right now they are trucking most of the oil around on the highway, and that is fairly inefficient.  One gas line may remain active, although it might be shut in as well when the new lines are laid.

Archaeologist Dr. Terry Gibson of Western Heritage Services, Inc. who has been hired by Pengrowth to work on this project told The Provost News that instead of crossing the site which he said is impossible because of intervening site deposits. Pengrowth has the option of following within existing pipeline right-of-ways.

“However, they can't really widen these existing routes, and if they stayed within the old routes they would run the risk of line shut-down if a pipeline began leaking. Repair of these leaks would require extensive ground disturbance and in an archaeologically sensitive location would entail major delays and considerable expense to take care of the resulting disturbance to the archaeological remains.”

Gibson discovered the site originally and in later years taught University of Alberta field schools in the spring and summer nearby, south west of Bodo.

“I had recommended that a new route be considered before Pengrowth took over the oil field several years ago. Some work was done to find a new route, but last fall Pengrowth committed to the new route and we began applying to the province for clearance to develop it, after landowner negotiations.”

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