Water-Centric Planning

banner

Tag:

forest hydrology

    LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “For the past 25 years, we have shone the hydrology spotlight on management of water volume to restore the natural water balance. Our next leap forward is to integrate the probabilistic framework evolved by UBC’s Younes Alila to reduce risk and liability,” stated Kim Stephens of the Partnership for Water Sustainability


    “The edition of Waterbucket eNews published on October 21, 2025 is about profiles in courage. It featured two individuals: former BC cabinet minister Mike Morris; and University of British Columbia professor Dr. Younes Alila. The story behind the story is about how they have aligned efforts to build awareness of Dr. Alila’s Flood Risk Methodology for flood protection. Their compelling message is that removal of forest cover, whether in rural or urban watersheds, increases the frequency, magnitude, duration and liability of floods,” stated Kim Stephens.

    Read Article

    INCREASED FREQUENCY, MAGNITUDE, DURATION AND LIABILITY OF FLOODS: “So, I put my markers down. If anyone goes back through the Hansard legislative record, they will find out how many times I spoke about the increased frequency, magnitude and duration of floods caused by clearcut logging,” stated Mike Morris, former BC Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General


    “Politics prevents you from doing the right thing because of the political lens that is put on everything. It was frustrating when I tried to bring the reality of the clearcut logging situation before my colleagues. And getting ignored because it did not fit the political agenda. Nobody seemed to care about the science. In the political world, it is based on whatever the flavour of the month is rather than what is right. Politicians ignore what they do not understand. By ignoring the consequences of clearcut logging, they put themselves in a pretty serious predicament,” stated Mike Morris.

    Read Article

    INCREASED FREQUENCY, MAGNITUDE, DURATION AND LIABILITY OF FLOODS: “It is not just that the forest owes its causal power to the landscape features. The hydrological response of the landscape owes its power to the landscape feature and to the climate feature. That’s the space-time relationship,” stated Dr. Younes Alila, professional engineer and professor in the UBC Faculty of Forestry


    “Evapotranspiration is necessary but not sufficient to empower the forest and affect hydrology in general and floods and droughts in particular. This can only be revealed through a probabilistic framework. Thinking like a system means you do not make decisions at the site scale. It is not about a particular stream reach or cross-section, or a bridge or a culvert. You need to step back and look at the big picture. You need to look at the entire stream network and what these flows are doing OVER TIME…AND IN THE LANDSCAPE OF THE WATERSHED,” stated Younes Alila.

    Read Article

    LANDSCAPES AND WATERSHEDS IN BC ARE AT A HEIGHTENED RISK: “While scientists have determined a causal link between logging and flood events, the historical approach to incorporating flood management into forestry planning has been overly simplistic,” wrote Dr. Julee Boan in an article for the Natural Resources Defense Council


    “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.”

    Read Article

    YOUTUBE VIDEO — OUR LOSING BATTLE WITH NATURE-TRANSITION OR DESTINY: “The risks are greater than we were led to believe by government, industry and professionals” – a webinar featuring Younes Alila and moderated by Lori Daniels of the UBC Faculty of Forestry


    “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?”

    Read Article

    YOUTUBE VIDEO — HYDROLOGY OF CONVENIENCE IN BC FORESTRY: “Powerful. Compelling. Younes Alila is passionate and engaging! This is a MUST WATCH video,” stated Kim Stephens, Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia


    “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.

    Read Article

    LANDSCAPES AND WATERSHEDS IN BC ARE AT A HEIGHTENED RISK: “In 1982, John Hewlett urged use of the probabilistic framework. But this cue from the godfather of forest hydrology was completely missed,” stated stated Younes Alila, professional engineer and professor in the UBC Faculty of Forestry


    “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.

    Read Article

    LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “Those who forged their career on the basis of the old will never admit to the wrong precedent. These are the counter-revolutionary forces!” stated Dr. Younes Alila, professional engineer and professor in the UBC Faculty of Forestry


    For more than a century, Dr. Alila explains, scientists have clung to a “deterministic” analysis. To use a strategic board game analogy, this is like looking at each move in isolation and thinking, “If I move here, then I should win.” It fails to account for the roll of the dice, the cards you draw, and what your opponents might do—all of which can change the game. “The risks are greater than we were led to believe by government, industry, and professionals. But scholars in the philosophy of science will tell you that scientists will never admit to erroneous precedents,” stated Younes Alila.

    Read Article