BC Agriculture & Food Climate Action Initiative

Cariboo – Agricultural Dams Knowledge Transfer Resource [cb07]

Region
Status completed in 2017
Project Lead Cariboo Cattlemens' Association
Funding Partners Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, BC Ministry of Agriculture

In parts of British Columbia, agricultural dams play a significant role in storing water for the sector during the production season. Climate change impacts – such as increasing temperatures and hydrological shifts – will make these storage sources even more important in the future. Previous research conducted through the Cooperative Maintenance and Enhancement of Agriculturally Significant Dams project and the Workshop on Maintaining and Enhancing Agricultural Dams confirmed that dam owners are seeking assistance with the development and implementation of dam safety management systems and with navigating the regulatory requirements for dam safety and management. Assisting producers will help to ensure these dams remain viable water sources for the future.

While there are existing materials available to dam owners, they are not being utilized. This underuse is likely due to the complexity of the requirements and clearly defined “pathways” for dam owners to address dam safety requirements.

This project will 1) Standardize, streamline and improve the clarity and accessibility of Dam Safety Management System forms and templates, 2) Develop new informational resources to address priority dam safety topics for dam owners as determined through an evaluation of existing resources and consultation with user and 3) Provide direct (face-to-face) outreach to assist dam owners to develop effective Dam Safety Management Systems through 5 training workshops for dam owners in the Cariboo and the Thompson/Okanagan. The project will also undertake outreach to producers and industry associations to widely share the improved/new resources and training session materials.

Project Results