Let your opinion ripple for the village. It's time to be aware that Veolia has noted damage to the Broad Ripple Canal and Dam's concrete structure and wants to give the historic and scenic waterway a facelift. Veolia contends that due to ducks, geese, and muskrats, the banks are eroding and may collapse if not repaired. The company, using FEMA guidelines, has proposed straightening the meandering canal and lining the banks with riprap course concrete rubble.

So what do you think?

This is truly a grassroots issue; solutions will affect every resident and visitor to Broad Ripple and what we will see for years to come.

The dam dates back to the 1870s and the Indianapolis Water Company, carrying water from the White River and deep drilled wells to the Riverside pumping station.

Did you know that 60% of the drinking water today comes from the canal water that is delivered to the treatment facility? Do you know this site possesses an amazing ecosystem with wildlife including waterfowl, fish, and turtles? We can't begin to count the number of visitors yearly to the canal nor the number of times artists and photographers have portrayed this Broad Ripple gem. The canal is an historic waterway and focal point of the village. How it looks contributes to the ambiance of the village. We all need to be aware of how Veolia aims to change the village's landscape.

Another meeting was held recently at Butler University's Gallahue Hall where concerned residents voiced their suggestions for more aesthetic solutions that would also respect and protect wildlife and the landscape of the canal. The water utility official said they would delay the project until spring and make more changes based on neighborhood and environmentalist feedback. If you are interested in voicing your opinion, write City Councilman Ryan Vaughn, Mayor Ballard, Veolia, Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the Broad Ripple Village Association. If you have a better solution than recontouring the seven-mile canal and packing its banks with riprap, let your voice be heard. (You can see riprap-packed canal banks from the College Avenue bridge and the reality that erosion still exists with this "fix".)

Some of thoughts I have heard mentioned:

• Bring in green landscapers, trail makers, the DNR, U.S. Fish and Wildlife to suggest alternatives for an aesthetic solution everyone can appreciate for years to come.
• Consider selling trapping licenses to contain muskrats and the damage they inflict. (Folks growing up in the area during the '50s trapped muskrats to manage their numbers.)
• Adopt village-wide awareness for NOT feeding the waterfowl to encourage yesteryear's migratory pattern.
• Discontinue Veolia's scalping perennial grasses along the banks as grasses deter erosion.
• An active plant management program could rid the area of Siberian Elms and invasive plants like honeysuckle. Planting useful trees and shrubs would prevent erosion and be a foundation for a beautiful landscape.