| Gleniffer Lake | |
| Location: | Red Deer County, Alberta |
| Coords: | 52.0264°N -114.2703°W |
| Type: | reservoir |
| Inflow: | Red Deer River |
| Outflow: | Red Deer River |
| Basin Countries: | Canada |
| Pushpin Map: | Alberta |
| Area: | [1] |
Gleniffer Lake also known as Gleniffer Reservoir or originally Lake Gleniffer[2] is an artificial lake in central Alberta, Canada created in 1983 by the construction of the Dickson Dam which impounded the Red Deer River, a major tributary of the South Saskatchewan River which flows into the Saskatchewan River Basin.[3]
It lies at an elevation of 945m (3,100feet), and is approximately 7km (04miles) long and 2km (01miles) wide. The lake is south of Highway 54 and east of the Cowboy Trail, 36km (22miles) west of Innisfail, Alberta and 36km (22miles) east of Caroline.
The lake has a surface of 17.6km2, and a watershed of 5610km2. It has an average depth of 11.6m (38.1feet), and reaches a maximum of 33m (108feet).[1]
Gleniffer Lake has day-use areas, cottages, a campground and resort developments including Carefree Resort and Gleniffer Lake Resort.[4]
The lake reservoir is a source of drinking water for the surrounding area.
Dickson Dam regulates the flow of the Red Deer River to control for floods and low winter flows, to improve quality of the river, to create a recreational resource and to provide a reliable, year-round water supply sufficient for future industrial, regional and municipal growth.[3]
Gleniffer Reservoir Provincial Recreation Area (PRA) is a recreational area with a beach, various fishing areas, boating, camping and resorts. In the summer of 2009, Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation consolidated six provincial recreation areas at Dickson Dam and around Gleniffer Lake (Dickson Dam–Cottonwood PRA, Dickson Dam–Dickson Point PRA, Dickson Dam–North Dyke PRA, Dickson Dam–South Dyke PRA, Dickson Dam–North Valley PRA, Dickson Dam–South Valley PRA) into one provincial recreation area renamed Gleniffer Reservoir PRA.[5] Motorboating, waterskiing, swimming, and sailboarding are allowed. There are rainbow trout in a trout pond.[6] Pike, Walleye, Rockies, and Brown Trout are also found nearby.[7] Gleniffer Reservoir PRA has trout ponds including one at Dickson Point which is popular for ice fishing.
Increased water flow of the Red Deer River system during heavy rainfall in June 2008 eroded supporting soil, freely exposing a section of Pembina Pipeline Corporation's Cremona crude oil pipeline to the Red Deer River currents. About 75to of crude oil flowed upstream from the breakpoint under a Red Deer River channel, leaving an oily sheen on Gleniffer Reservoir and of oil-soaked debris.[8] [9] The remediation was completed in 2011.[10]
Heavy rains in early June 2012 caused a similar but larger leak on a Plains Midstream Canada 46-year-old pipeline at Jackson Creek which spilled between 1000and of light sour crude into the Red Deer River.[11] [12]