BC Flood Strategy an Important Step for Farmers and Ranchers

Image - Submitted, BC Agriculture Council

ABBOTSFORD, B.C.  – March 21, 2024: Today, the Government of British Columbia released From Flood Risk to Resilience: a B.C. Flood Strategy to 2035. This is a significant development for farmers and ranchers, many having experienced severe impacts from flood events over recent years. In 2021, flooding in B.C. affected over 1,100 farms, including 15,000 hectares of farmland and 2.5 million livestock.  ​

“The new Flood Strategy is an important step in ensuring farmers, their families, and the food they produce for our communities are protected from flood,” says Jennifer Woike, BC Agriculture Council President. “But we also know that a real difference is only made when a strategy is put into action. We look forward to working with the Province to ensure flood risks are quickly identified and addressed.” 

The Flood Strategy includes several important commitments from the provincial government to work with agriculture. These include: 

• Development of an Emergency Preparedness Strategy on Food Security and supporting increased flood resilience for agricultural producers. 
• Drawing upon farmers’ perspectives and know-how through a Minister’s Flood Risk Advisory Circle, which will be responsible for advising the Minister of Water, Land, and Resource Stewardship about flood risk management. 
• Seeking input from the sector in the development of a tentatively named FloodWiseBC program, aimed at raising public awareness of flood risks. 

Since the devastating floods of 2021, BC Agriculture Council has worked closely with all levels of government to raise awareness of the risks flooding poses to the food security of communities and the livelihoods of farmers and ranchers. This has included contributing feedback through the development of the Flood Strategy released today. 

Earlier this week, the Province also announced $80 million in new funding for the Agriculture Water Infrastructure Program, on top of an initial commitment of $20 million in Budget 2023. These investments will support water storage and related infrastructure, which can capture and store water from periods of high precipitation that farmers can then use in growing crops and raising animals during dry conditions.  

Budget 2023 also included a commitment of up to $20 million for the Fraser Valley Flood Mitigation Program. With support from this program, agricultural producers, First Nations, municipalities, and Regional Districts are working collaboratively on projects that can increase resilience to flooding in areas of the Fraser Valley identified as at high risk. 

The government’s From Flood Risk to Resilience: a B.C. Flood Strategy to 2035 can be viewed here. 

For more information:
Cassy James  
Communications Manager 
T: (604) 854-4454 ext 195
E: [email protected]

About BC Agriculture Council:  BCAC's mission is to grow a strong, sustainable, and competitive agriculture sector through building industry consensus and advancing public policy. This is achieved by delivering a unified voice for the sector to government through member farm associations that in turn, represent approximately 96% of provincial farm gate sales.