Ottawa provides $117M for drought resilience on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast

Feds fund new reservoirs

Photo: The Canadian Press

Paddlers and a kayaker are silhouetted on the Sunshine Coast in Halfmoon Bay, B.C., on Dec. 28, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

The federal government is providing $117 million to help solve what it describes as the "heightening water crisis" due to drought on British Columbia's Sunshine Coast, where the Sechelt area has been hit especially hard.

A statement from the Department of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities says the project will involve upgrading the existing water treatment plant and constructing two large-scale storage reservoirs for the Chapman Creek watershed.

It's the source of municipal water for about 76 per cent of Sunshine Coast residents.

The statement from the federal government says the new reservoirs will provide a more reliable and sustainable supply during periods of drought.

The funding comes just over two years after the Sunshine Coast Regional District declared a state of local emergency and ordered water-use restrictions in fall 2022, when a prolonged summer drought quickly transitioned into freezing conditions.

The region saw just a trace of rain between July and mid-October that year.

The upgrades announced Thursday will be led by the shishalh Nation in partnership with the regional district.

Shishalh Chief Lenora Joe says they will work to adapt to climate change, collecting water during winter storms for use in dry periods.

"Through this project we are planning for future generations in innovative and thoughtful ways," Joe says in the statement.

The money will flow through the federal government's disaster mitigation and adaptation fund.