West Kelowna, Regional District asking province for review of this year’s flooding

KELOWNA – Both the Central Okanagan Regional District and the City of West Kelowna are asking the province to conduct a review of the 2017 flooding of Okanagan Lake.

Council unanimously agreed to request a review of all possible factors leading to the flooding and mitigation efforts after this spring’s flooding event, according to a City of West Kelowna media release.

At the top of the list of issues to be looked into is and the release of water from Okanagan Lake at the multiple dams on the water system.

West Kelowna council is also requesting the province review the capacity of municipalities and First Nations to respond to emergencies, the banning of power boats during times of declared state of emergency, flood plain building, upland logging impacts, fishery needs, climate change impacts and freshet management, as well as the need for additional data collection stations related to snowpack, streamflow and weather.

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