Ownership of dam unknown

Photo: Town of Princeton

Chain Lake from the Princeton-Summerland Rd.

The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen and provincial government are locked in a dispute over who exactly owns the Chain Lake Dam north of Princeton.

Chain Lake is about 50 kilometres west of Summerland on the Princeton-Summerlad Road, and is a popular recreation and camping area.

This week the RDOS board disclosed that in a closed meeting last month it passed a resolution to “dispute the province’s assertion that the RDOS is an owner of the Chain Lake Dam.”

In an email to Castanet, RDOS board chair Karla Kozakevich confirmed they have been “in discussions” with the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resources on the issue.

“The RDOS was not considered to be owners of the Chain Lake Dam historically,” she said.

Kozakevich explained the provincial government claims the RDOS owns the dam based on its interpretation of a water licence held by the RDOS to maintain a diversion structure that moves water from Shinnish Creek to Chain Lake.

In the eyes of the RDOS, that license does not include maintaining the Chain Lake Dam — something the province disagrees with them on.

“In order to ensure the Chain Lake Dam is compliant with provincial regulations, a substantial amount of funding is required,” Kozakevich said.

She said several studies are needed to get a handle on the condition of the dam.

“In this case, a ‘dam safety audit’ is required in order to review any upgrades required. Both the study and the potential upgrades are very expensive.”

The issue surfaced when water licenses in the area were reviewed by the provincial government, which deemed the RDOS to be the owner of the dam.

Kozakevich says ownership of the dam is still undetermined and talks with the ministry continue.