A swath of riverbank along the Bow River from Calgary to Cochrane will become a natural environment corridor thanks to a large donation of land from a prominent family.

Lois Haskayne said Wednesday she and her husband Richard turned the land over to the city to ensure it remains in its natural state.

"What terrified both Dick and myself would be that this pristine land could [turn] into a strip mall with hundreds of houses and totally destroy that natural fescue. And in the spring it is covered with wildflowers, covered with crocuses. You can't imagine how lovely it is."

The donation, combined with land earlier donated by the couple to the University of Calgary, completes 360 acres that will become a regional park named after the family.

Calgary will pay $20 million to the University of Calgary, about $5 million to the Haskaynes, and the rest — conservatively estimated at just under $6 million — is considered a donation from the couple.

The cash is coming from the profits from Enmax, the city-owned electric company.