B.C. upping flood protections in Sumas Prairie with learnings from 2021 flood

More substantial protections against mass flooding will soon be developed in the Sumas Prairie.

The B.C. government announced Friday that more than $4 million is being provided to “support framework” that all partners will use to address the challenges of flooding risks in the area.

Those partners include the City of Abbotsford and Chilliwack, Semá:th, Matsqui and Leq’á:mel First Nations.

Part of that framework will be a government-funded technical team of experts that will “share knowledge and advice” on best practices for flood-risk mitigation.

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“The atmospheric river events of November 2021 resulted in devastating flooding of the Sumas Prairie, impacting the lives and livelihood of everyone in Abbotsford and cutting the Lower Mainland off from the rest of the province and country,” said Bowinn Ma, B.C. Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness.

“We know we can’t keep doing things the way we’ve done before if we want to protect the region from future catastrophic flooding.”

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Along with the $4 million for framework, the province has also allocated around $8.5 million for 10 upgrade projects.

One of the major upgrade projects will be at Abbotsford’s Barrowtown pump station, which was overwhelmed in the historic November 2021 flooding.

According to the government, funding will enable the design and construction of a flood wall to protect the pump station, including its electrical system.

Other projects include upgrading the Sumas Dike and repairing roads and infrastructure.

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“The 2021 flood was a devastating event for people and businesses in Abbotsford and the road to recovery has been and continues to be long,” said Abbotsford Mayor Ross Siemens.

“With assistance from the province, we are getting our community back on its feet and restoring infrastructure, while we continue to work with local First Nations and senior levels of government to rebuild.”

In November 2021, a once-in-a-century atmospheric river storm caused severe flooding, landslides and mudslides across interior and coastal regions of the province.

“Joining in this multi-government agreement is a small but significant step in the right direction for us to have a say in the management of our land, S’ólh Téméxw,” said Semá:th First Nation Chief Dalton Silver.

“By participating in this agreement, we are exercising our inherent right, taking a role in shaping a better place for future generations. This is just the beginning, but we are hopeful that this agreement will serve as a foundation for more collaborative efforts between different levels of government, and we will continue to work towards a sustainable and prosperous future for S’ólh Téméxw.”

The flooding also inundated farmland and killed thousands of animals in the Sumas Prairie.