Communities across B.C. say they are not financially equipped to protect themselves against flooding and they want provincial help putting their fingers in the dike.
Delegates at the 2022 Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) passed a special resolution Wednesday asking the provincial government to “significantly increase its level of funding and assume greater responsibility for flood preparedness and mitigation.”
The resolution states municipal governments do not have the financial or human resources to conduct all the necessary work. It also calls on the province to re-assume responsibility for diking after the provincial government had downloaded that responsibility to local governments in 2003, a point acknowledged by current Premier John Horgan.
Background material acknowledges that the province is putting more money toward emergency management, including $1.5 billion over three years to help communities rebuild critical infrastructure after the various flooding and fire events in 2021, but laments that issues related to diking authority remain unresolved.
The UBCM — which represents 189 local governments — is hosting its annual convention this week in Whistler.
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