Image: Flooding in Cache Creek / A. Ahmed / CFJC Today

By Doug Collins

One Man's Opinion

COLLINS: Are there any long-term solutions to localized flooding?

May 14, 2023 | 6:00 AM

YEAR AFTER YEAR, as summer approaches, certain communities become common household words: Cache Creek, Bonaparte, Merritt, Coldwater, Princeton, Stump Lake, Cherry Creek, the Coquihalla, and Okanagan Mission.

Many of these names never get mentioned during the course of a year, but every year at this time, as the spring runoff occurs, these areas rise in prominence. That’s because year after year, the spring freshet creates flooding issues for residents in these areas.

Cache Creek has already been inundated by flooding running right through the community, causing, at the minimum, tens of thousands of dollars in damages. High streamflow advisories have already been issued for a number of areas. On top of this, the latest information from the River Forecast Centre shows we’re only a quarter of the way through the runoff. And with warm weather expected to continue, further flooding is a real possibility.

These floods are on residents’ radar every spring, and yet there don’t seem to be any long-term solutions in place. Just the usual tongue-wagging by the bureaucrats and politicians who seem to have no idea what to do.

Every year, the solution seems to be to dump a bunch of sandbags at the river’s edge, put some sand next to them and expect residents to put them in place, and hope they don’t have to shell out too many dollars in flood relief. Definitely not a long-term solution.

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Cities like Kamloops have done a lot to mitigate the danger with such measures as dikes. Others haven’t risen to the occasion, and again are trying to cope.

While governments do little, residents wonder what their options are. And with climate change, these problems will worsen quickly.

Do we build higher dikes to hold back the water, or do we simply roll with the flow and hope that, with some luck, we won’t have to face problems this year? Can we even look at buying up property and moving some of these people to a safer location?

These choices are not easy, but time is running out. We can only hold out so long. The government has to put a strategy sooner rather than later.

So much talk, so little action.

I’m Doug Collins and that’s One Man’s Opinion.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.