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Perfect melt

Warm afternoons and cold nights bring a smile to Bill Bartley’s face.
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Lakehead Region Conservation Authority chairman Bill Bartley says if Mother Nature co-operates, the spring melt shouldn’t pose a problem. (Leith Dunick, tbnewswatch.com)

Warm afternoons and cold nights bring a smile to Bill Bartley’s face.

Bartley, head of the Lakehead Region Conservation Authority, said if the weather pattern continues, the city shouldn’t face flooding problems as the snow continues to melt.

“If Mother Nature is nice to us and has the melt and the run-off as we’ve been experiencing over the last couple of days, it would be perfect,” Bartley said on Thursday.

It’s the most snow he’s seen since 1996, and while he remains hopeful, he said it’s a little early to know exactly how the spring weather will roll out.

“We’re certainly monitoring it. We do snow surveys. Yes the snowpack is a little higher than normal and the water content is a little higher than normal right now, but it certainly isn’t at the levels it was in 1996,” he said.

“So we’re very confident at this present time that if Mother Nature keeps doing what she’s doing it’ll be great.”

The worst case scenario would be a sudden rise in temperature combined with a heavy rainfall. That could lead to trouble, Bartley said.

“The rivers are still frozen and 91 per cent of the Great Lakes are still frozen out there. It would be a problem. But at the present time we’re not anticipating that. We’re certainly watching and if anything changes we will certainly let the public know,” Bartley said.

Environment Canada officials have said to expect a cooler than normal spring, which should slow down the melting process.

 

 



Leith Dunick

About the Author: Leith Dunick

A proud Nova Scotian who has called Thunder Bay home since 2002, Leith is Dougall Media's director of news, but still likes to tell your stories too. Wants his Expos back and to see Neil Young at least one more time. Twitter: @LeithDunick
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