Come Hell or High Water
Communities in British Columbia have recently been surveyed on the status of their wildfire and flood plans. The results showed that the majority of at-risk communities were lacking detailed plans, or were lacking the funds necessary to appropriately enact them. With hotter, drier summers, and more frequent flooding predicted for the coming years, what does this mean for BC?
Prevention

The community emergency plans for wildfire and flood preparedness paint bleak pictures for our province. More than two thirds of the communities surveyed did not have a detailed, costed flood plan in place. On the other hand, more than two thirds of the communities had wildfire plans in place, however they were relying on the provincial government for the funding needed to fulfill those plans.
The reality is that that funding is not enough. In the past twenty years, less than 10% of the necessary work to fulfill communities’ wildfire preparedness plans has been completed, leaving many communities in British Columbia vulnerable to the deadly effects of forest fires. Smaller communities that are surrounded by forests face that risk every summer. But without funding, or permission to touch trees on Crown land, their hands are tied.
Action
The provincial government is more than willing to jump into action when natural disaster strikes, as evidenced by their Disaster Financial Assistance package that provides up to $300,000 to each affected business or household to cover 80% of the cost of damages. On the other hand, when communities want to prevent wildfire or flood damage, the maximum funding that they are eligible for is $150,000 per year, and only if they can demonstrate that they are at high risk.
Real Cost
The cost to fulfill all of the plans as they currently stand (and keep in mind that the true cost is likely much higher, as many of the plans are not fully priced out, or are over the recommended 5-year refresh period) is $190 million for wildfire plans, and
$7.7 billion for flood plans. If communities expect to rely solely on government funding to move forward with their prevention plans, much of our province will be severely and permanently impacted by the hotter, drier temperatures, rising sea levels, and severe flooding associated with the climate crisis.
Another Way Forward
The City of Richmond, which is on average only 1 meter above sea level, is the only community in British Columbia that has put their money where their mouth is, and made flood prevention a budgetary priority.
In fact, by the year 2030, they estimate that they will be collecting $30 million per year in flood protection utility fees by way of a line item on all municipal utility statements. The fee, which was implemented in 2000, has gradually increased over time, and will continue to do so to ensure that the community is prepared for and protected against a variety of water-related natural disasters.
Other communities in BC have lamented the cost of wildfire and flood prevention, and stated that they simply cannot move forward without additional assistance from the government. However, Richmond’s
$173 flood protection utility charge (2022) has shown that moderate-large communities do have the ability to help themselves, if they only make it a priority.
If you’d like to comment on this article or explore these ideas further, contact me at elleni.
This article was published in the
June 2022
edition of The TMC Advisor
- ISSN 2369-663X Volume:9 Issue:2
©2022 TMC Consulting