Whereas climate change has led to an increased frequency and severity of extreme weather emergencies and disasters, including flooding events; And whereas recent events have provided further evidence that BC local governments do not have the financial or human resources to conduct all necessary work e.g. maintenance and repair of key infrastructure in order to effectively address flood risks: Therefore be it resolved that the Province of British Columbia significantly increase its level of funding and assume greater responsibility for flood preparedness and mitigation. And be it further resolved that this increased role in flood protection include the Province being re-established as diking authority in all local governments.
Ministry of Forests Decisions on floodplains and holistic local approaches to flood risk reduction are stronger when made in the context of relationships and values at the community-level along with support and guidelines from the Province. The Province works closely with local authorities, First Nations and other government partners to address flood risks. This includes an investment of 123 million for over 300 flood risk reduction projects in the last five years through programs such as the Community Emergency Preparedness Fund CEPF, Adaptation, Resilience and Disaster Mitigation Program ARDM and National Disaster Mitigation Program NDMP. The Province will continue to explore enhancements to flood mitigation funding opportunities for local governments, including opportunities that leverage federal government programs to improve flood resilience in BC. Authorities for most regulated dikes in BC date back to when they were constructed, decades ago. This placed authority for inspection and maintenance with local diking authorities, with costs for design and construction often shared across local, provincial, and federal levels. A 2003 amendment to the Dike Management Act did not change dike authorities, but gave the responsibility of approving subdivisions, floodplain bylaws and variances to local governments. The BC Flood Strategy Intentions Paper was released on October 20th, 2022. Over the fall, the Province with Alderhill Planning and the SFU Centre for Dialogue engaged a total of 233 participants, of which 48 identified as Indigenous. Engagement with First Nations and local governments were held together based on BCs water basins and Indigenous language families to explore options for a potential new flood risk reduction paradigm. Engagement also included stakeholders and other partners to address concerns and barriers related to dike management. The Province is committed to continue to work collaboratively with local governments, First Nations and other partners to explore and implement a broad range of flood risk reduction options. A combination of flood protection alongside flood accommodation, risk avoidance and community-led retreat will lead to higher levels of resilience.