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“Flood projections often haven’t reflected the true risk of flooding after logging. Extreme flooding events are increasing with climate change. Research shows how clearcut logging increases risks to communities and ecosystems,” stated Julee Bean. “Decades of research by Dr. Younes Alila have shown that conventional scientific methods have underestimated the role of industrial logging in elevating flood risk and have led to forest management policies and practices that “severely and consistently underestimated” the impact of forest cover loss on flood risk.”

“Climate change has elevated the risk of extreme weather the world over,” stated UBC’s Dr. Lori Daniels, webinar moderator. “In British Columbia, a natural flood risk mitigator lies all around us in the water-absorbing power of trees. Research has shown that even a modest loss of forest cover due to wildfire, logging and disease can cause surprisingly large increases in the frequency of extreme floods. Will dykes, dams and levees be enough to protect against property loss and devastation from floods in the future?”

“Through his research thrust over three decades, Younes Alila landed on a discovery that challenges mainstream practices and provides the foundation for a paradigm-shift in forest hydrology science and practice. In sharing his findings at a Community Town Hall event hosted at UBC Okanagan Campus in April 2024, Younes Alila laid out a compelling and powerful storyline that he titled Hydrology of Convenience in BC Forestry. He uses the term hydrology of convenience to frame the issue and thus capture attention,” stated Kim Stephens.

“Hydrologists have understandably been confused by the difficulties inherent in describing the nature and frequency of floods to laymen, who are apt to have little patience with probability statements. But among ourselves we must drop back to rigorous language in order to discuss and trade information about land-use causes and flood effects,” wrote John Hewlett, professor emeritus of forest resources at the University of Georgia. Many fundamental precepts of modern hydrology can be traced back to Hewlett’s work, including interflow and the use of stream buffers.

Mike Wei’s over-arching message is that water invariably gets bumped by other priorities. “The lesson from BC is that the historical regulatory context cannot be ignored in regulatory design. The science forward approach which some academics advocate is a good idea but has practical challenges. Unless you have specific legislation that actually tells you what the important requirements are, it is very hard to go forward. It can be challenging to do the science. One of the challenges with science forward is if it is not legislated, it is not a priority for government,” stated Mike Wei.

“At a time when most other jurisdictions continue to lose their food lands, BC’s ALR remains the most successful agricultural land preservation program in North America. With food security now becoming a top-of-mind public issue, thanks to the foresight demonstrated in 1973 we still have “the land” – and I submit we would not still have the option for viable agricultural sectors in high growth areas like the Lower Mainland or the Okanagan without the ALR. The ALR has been doing exactly what it was designed to do,” stated Joan Sawicki.

“It is an exciting time to be responsible for hydrometric data collection in British Columbia. The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy has received new funding to build a team and distribute hydrometric technicians across the province to train and mentor stewardship groups, First Nations, and internal staff regarding hydrometric operation,” says Neil Goeller. “The Province is looking for opportunities to improve the base of information that informs decisions related to land and resource planning. And stewardship groups provide a great opportunity to produce that kind of information.”

“First Nations jurisdiction must be recognized in all areas, including emergency management,” the B.C. Assembly of First Nations regional chief, Terry Teegee, said after the November 2021 floods. “We are the most at risk during these catastrophic climate events, which are sadly no longer isolated incidents but ongoing repercussions of climate change.” A 2015 study by the Fraser Basin Council found 61 reserves and other parcels of treaty lands in the Lower Mainland could be inundated in either a major Fraser River flood or a coastal storm surge flood.

The increased wildfire risk and potential for more frequent, larger fires is exacerbated by warming temperatures. It’s why a paradigm shift is needed, one where forests are managed for resilience on a much larger scale and not just mainly for their commercial timber value, says Lori Daniels, a University of B.C. forestry professor with expertise in wildfire. It also means targeting priority areas rather than relying on ad hoc grants that do not target priorities. “We’ve set ourselves up for a total lose-lose situation,” she said.

“Provincial efforts have fallen far short of what is needed to properly prepare for and reduce risks from an expected increase in both the frequency and intensity of floods and wildfires in the face of climate change. Our four-month investigation found a majority of B.C. communities do not have a comprehensive, costed, flood-mitigation plan. For those that have a costed plan, the total bill tops $7.74 billion,” wrote Glenda Luymes. “As a result of climate change, experts believe what is now considered a 500-year flood, meaning a river level that in the past occurred once in 500 years, could become more frequent.”