Answers

1. How do we know where flooding will occur?

   Flood maps indicate the areas that are exposed to the flood hazard. The areas with the highest hazard are often closest to the water or in low lying areas. Recent coastal flood hazard maps for Courtenay (and the entire CVRD) have been developed as part of the CVRD Coastal Flood Mapping Project. Floodplain map can found here.

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2. Can we predict how damaging a flood event will be?

   It’s not possible to know how damaging a specific flood event will be. The damage and overall impact of a flood, depends on factors such as how high the water gets, how long it stays, and what it comes into contact with.

   The City of Courtenay has created consequence maps to better understand which assets are located in the floodplain and are at risk of being negatively impacted by flooding. The maps highlight impacts to people, buildings, critical infrastructure, cultural sites, and sensitive ecosystems. Consequence Maps can be found here.

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3. What is flood risk?

   Risk is a combination of how likely it is that an area will flooded, and the resulting impacts caused by the flood. For example, a large flood event that happens once in awhile may bring significant risk, but so could a small flood event that happens every year. See the Flood Risk and Resilience 101 backgrounder for more information.

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4. What options are being considered to reduce flood risk?

   The Flood Management Plan is considering a broad range of strategies to adapt to flooding now and in the future. The city is working to assess the feasibility of the options, and identify the approach preferred by the community. 

   Options for reducing flood risk could include things like: relocating buildings and critical infrastructure, upgrading existing infrastructure, directing development to higher ground, and helping build resilience of those located in the flood hazard area.

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5. How can I get involved and share my feedback on the Courtenay Flood Management Plan?

   Sign up to receive email updates, and stay tuned! Project updates and opportunities to review proposed flood risk reduction strategies will be added to this webpage as they come available. 

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6. My home is located in the floodplain; how can I reduce the flood risk?

   Resources for homeowners are available here. See the Ways to Take Action backgrounder for more information.

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