Canada and British Columbia Partner to Deliver on Flood Mitigation Priority

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire -01/24/12)- Twenty communities across B.C. will benefit from greater flood protection thanks to a joint investment by the governments of Canada and British Columbia.

The announcement, made today by the Honourable Lynne Yelich, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification, and the Honourable Steve Thomson, Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, on behalf of the Honourable Shirley Bond, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General for British Columbia, is aimed at helping communities meet their pressing infrastructure needs, protecting families and communities' critical infrastructure, and supporting continued economic growth.

"Our Government is committed to strengthening our communities and protecting Canadians," said Minister Yelich. "We know that by investing in flood mitigation measures, we are delivering on our commitment to provide greater safety for residents, and significant economic benefits for British Columbia."

This joint investment of over $36 million is geared toward 22 flood mitigation projects which will help communities address existing flood concerns, and take proactive steps toward preventing flooding emergencies. The initiatives range from flood protection in the Cowichan Valley, to storm water diversion in Summerland, to upgrading the Maple Pump Station in Surrey. Flood protection projects were selected from local government or dike authority applications that offered cost-effective solutions for areas at risk.

"By working as partners, we're proactively preventing flooding emergencies, rather than just responding to them," said Minister Thomson. "These projects provide critical flood protection for the safety of the public and help protect the businesses and industries that provide jobs for British Columbians."

Federal and provincial governments provide up to two-thirds of the funding for eligible project costs, with local governments and diking authorities covering the remainder of project funding. These investments are being delivered through two important programs.

"The flood mitigation funding that communities across B.C. received today is another example of our Federal and Provincial government's ongoing commitment to ensuring communities like ours have access to the support they need," said City of Abbotsford Mayor Bruce Banman. "Today's funding will allow us to complete much needed upgrades to our Barrowtown Pump Station."

In 2008, the federal government allocated $136 million to the Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund in B.C. to support local government infrastructure projects in communities with a population of less than 100,000 people. Of this funding, $25 million was specifically allocated to accommodate disaster mitigation projects selected through the Provincial Flood Protection Program. Mitigation funds are assisting communities across B.C. by providing funding for new dikes, erosion protection, pump stations, flood boxes and other structures to better protect communities from flooding.

The Provincial-Territorial Base Fund (PT Base Fund) is part of the Building Canada Plan and provides $175 million to each province and territory to address core infrastructure priorities such as water, waste water, green energy, regional and community airports, and safe roads. Of this funding, $23 million was identified for the Flood Protection Program.

Since the beginning of this partnership, federal, provincial and local governments have committed to 137 projects with a combined total value of nearly $125 million to protect communities against flood hazards throughout British Columbia.

For more information on these funding programs, visit: www.bcbuildingcanadafundcommunities.ca and www.infrastructure.gc.ca.

A backgrounder follows.

 

                               BACKGROUNDER

                           BUILDING CANADA FUND
                 COMMUNITIES COMPONENT - FLOOD MITIGATION

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                                                       Total     Federal and
                                                    Eligible      Provincial
Name of Applicant / Project Title                       Cost           Share
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District of Summerland - Prairie Creek
 Stormwater Diversion Works                    $     752,950   $     501,966
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District of Kent - Hammersley Pump Station
 Upgrade: Floodbox Contruction                 $     495,000   $     330,000
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City of Vernon - Okanagan Landing Flood
 Protection Works                              $     960,000   $     640,000
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Dewdney Area Improvement District - Hatzic -
 Construction of Hatzic Pump Station           $   4,039,500   $   2,693,000
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District of Squamish - Upgrade to Harris
 Slough Pump Station, Whitaker Slough
 Floodbox, and Stawamus River Dike             $     663,300   $     442,200
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District of Sparwood - Elk River Riprap
 Protection Works                              $      16,500   $      11,000
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City of Courtenay - Tsolum River Flood
 Protection                                    $     707,163   $     471,442
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Town of Golden - Kicking Horse River Dike
 Upgrade                                       $   3,360,000   $   2,240,000
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Regional District of East Kootenay - West
 Fernie Dike Upgrade                           $   2,250,000   $   1,500,000
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Town of Princeton - Burton Flats Dike
 Upgrades (Similkameen River)                  $     315,000   $     210,000
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City of Prince George - River Road Dike
 Construction                                  $   8,163,000   $   5,442,000
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Cowichan Valley Regional District - Duncan -
 Cowichan Valley Flood Protection Phase 1      $   7,750,000   $   5,166,666
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Village of Hazelton - Skeena River Dike
 Erosion Protection Upgrade                    $     350,529   $     233,686
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Regional District of Okanagan - Similkameen
 - Eastgate Flood Protection Phase 2           $     136,500   $      91,000
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Central Coast Regional District - Bella
 Coola Airport Dike Upgrade                    $   3,450,000   $   2,300,000
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TOTAL AMOUNT                                   $  33,409,442   $  22,272,960
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             Provincial-Territorial Base Fund - Flood Mitigation

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                                                      Total      Federal and
                                                   Eligible       Provincial
Project                                                Cost            Share
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Richmond - No.1 Road North DrainagePump
 Station Upgrade                             $    3,450,000   $    2,300,000
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Surrey - Fraser River Flood ProtectionWorks
 (Phase 2)                                   $    7,680,000   $    5,120,000
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Surrey - Maple Pump Station Upgrade          $    1,563,000   $    1,042,000
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Burnaby - Fraser River Dike (Reach 1, 4, 6,
 9)                                          $    5,040,000   $    3,360,000
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Abbotsford - Barrowtown Pump
 StationElectrical and Controls System
 Upgrades (Phase 2)                          $    1,335,000   $      890,000
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Coquitlam - Scott Creek and Hoy CreekBypass
 Sediment Trapping Facilities                $      465,000   $      310,000
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Richmond - Williams Road Drainage Pump
 Station Upgrade                             $    1,905,000   $    1,270,000
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TOTAL AMOUNT                                 $   21,438,000   $   14,292,000
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