Over the past decade, the City of Dawson Creek has felt the impacts of flooding on the people, infrastructure and businesses. To better understand flood risk, the City completed a Flood Mitigation Planning Report (Ebbwater, 2018) which served as a gap analyses and preliminary flood risk assessment. In this report, based on historical events, the Dawson Creek community and watershed were identified as having a moderate to high risk to the effects of flooding. As a first priority, it was recommended that the City update flood mapping through a holistic lens.
Figure 1: Dawson Creek Flood Events. Ebbwater, 2018.
In March of 2019, the City received grant funding from Emergency Management BC and Public Safety Canada for the amount of $295,000 to produce current flood mapping. This work not only updated the City’s current flood map completed in 1974, but it integrated hydraulic (depth and velocity), hydrometric (flows) and geomorphic (erosion hazards) characteristics of the creek (Ebbwater, 2020).
Flood mapping work is essential to understanding what areas become wet during different sized flooding events, but mapping alone does not provide mitigation strategies. Understanding the best solutions to community based flood resiliency requires a review of all past research and possible mitigation options. Due to the diversity of impacts (direct and indirect) throughout the whole watershed, the best approach to community resiliency is to consider both structural (infrastructure) and non-structural methods (Emergency Response, community preparedness, planning and policy development etc.).
The City is currently working towards both structural and non-structural mitigation options to enhance flood resiliency in our community.
Reports
Click on links below to open PDF reports.
- Dawson Creek Flood Mitigation Report 2020
- Appendix A – Topographic Surface Development
- Appendix B – Hydrology and Climate Change Background
- Appendix C – Hydraulic Model Documentation
- Appendix D – (see Maps Section)
- Appendix E – Fluvial Geomorphology Assessment
- Appendix F – Stormwater Drainage Assessment
- Dawson Creek Flood Mitigation Report 2018
- Sanitary Sewer Master Plan 2013
Maps
Appendix D – Flood Map Atlas
Photos & Video
Photos
- 2020-07 1-3 Flood Event Photos (ZIP file, 86 MB)
- 2020-06- 14 &15 Flood Event Photos (ZIP file, 47 MB)
- 2018-04-26 Freshet Flood Photos (ZIP file, 191MB)
- 2016-06-16 Flood Air Photos (ZIP file, 480MB)
Videos
Portal
Online portal for public to monitor precipitation/creek flows.
(COMING SOON)
Questions & Contact Information
- Email: watershed@dawsoncreek.ca
- Phone: 250-782-1793