SLRD secures funding to reduce risk at Lillooet Lake Estates

Contribution funding provided through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program and Community Emergency Preparedness Fund will support the Catiline Creek Debris Flow Mitigation Project

SLRD Electoral Area C – The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) is grateful to the Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia for funds received in support of the Catiline Creek Debris Flow Mitigation Project.

The SLRD will receive up to $5.697 million from the Green Infrastructure Stream (GIS) of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) to support the project, which is aimed at constructing a debris flow mitigation structure to reduce the risk to the Lillooet Lake Estates community from future debris flows originating from Catiline Creek.

Funding from the ICIP GIS stream will supplement a previously announced $2 million grant through the Province’s Community Emergency Preparedness Fund (CEPF) Disaster Risk Reduction – Climate Adaptation program, bringing the total grant funding for this project to: $7.697 million.

The community of Lillooet Lake Estates will contribute up to $4 million to the project through a loan authorization bylaw adopted by the SLRD Board in 2022. With the addition of the ICIP funds, the total confirmed funding for the project comes to $11.697 million.

“Extreme weather, including heavy rainfall events are becoming more common, increasing the risk of significant landslides and floods. We need our communities to be resilient to a rapidly changing climate,” said Patrick Weiler, Member of Parliament for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, on behalf of the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities. “That’s why we’re working with our provincial and municipal partners to protect Lillooet Lake Estates from these risks so that it can remain a safe place to live and raise a family. The Government of Canada will continue to work with all orders of government to take proactive measures that will protect residents from natural disasters across British Columbia.”

The SLRD has worked with the community for a number of years on items related to the debris flow hazard at Catiline Creek.

“Making our communities more resilient to climate risks such as flooding and landslides helps ensure people, property and critical infrastructure are better protected,” said Bowinn Ma, Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. “The Province of B.C. continues to focus on mitigative efforts across the province, including in the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District. Our additional contribution of almost $2.6 million to the Catiline Creek mitigation project supplements an earlier grant of $2 million and helps ensure the long-term sustainability of Lillooet Lake Estates.”

“These funding programs are fundamental to the success of this project,” said SLRD Board Chair, Jen Ford. “The cost to complete this project is significant, and these funds reduce the financial burden on this community,” she said. “We are very grateful to our federal and provincial government partners for their support with this important work.”

SLRD Electoral Area C Director Russell Mack added that these funds further solidify the path forward for this project. “This project has been a long-time coming,” Mack said. “This community has experienced significant landslide activity and remains at risk,” he said. “The debris flow mitigation project has been a priority for the community for many years, and we’re all relieved to see the funding come through for this project.”

In September 2022 the community of Lillooet Lake Estates petitioned the SLRD to establish a service and borrow up to $4 million for debris flow mitigation at Catiline Creek. In December 2022 the SLRD Board adopted the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District Catiline Creek Debris Flow Mitigation Service Establishing Bylaw No. 1786-2022 and Squamish-Lillooet Regional District Catiline Creek Debris Flow Mitigation Service Loan Authorization Bylaw No. 1787-2022, and approved inclusion of service and project resources in the 2023-2027 Financial Plan. Costs related to the service and associated borrowing are collected from the community of Lillooet Lake Estates via annual tax requisition.

“Community support for this project has been critical to bringing it to this stage,” said Mack. “We appreciate the efforts of the community in driving this project forward, and in sticking with it through this long process,” he said. “Without the efforts of community members, and their strong commitment to the process, including their funding portion, we could not have moved this forward.”

The project is to design, construct, and establish operation and maintenance of a debris flow mitigation structure for the Catiline Creek at Lillooet Lake Estates. The objective of the project is to reduce the risk to the community and potential for loss of life by increasing capacity of the existing channel to manage future debris flows up to 100,000 cubic metres through the community, under a new forest service road bridge, and into Lillooet Lake. The SLRD is working closely with the Ministry of Forests to coordinate the Ministry’s replacement of the In-SHUCK-ch bridge over Catiline Creek in conjunction with the project. Details of the project scope, current funding, and approved budget along with community updates can be found on the project website: /catilinedfm

“This project is very important for the safety of our community which has experienced a number of dangerous debris-related events over the years and is at great risk of further events,” said Gary Young, President, Lillooet Lake Estates. “The community has rallied to provide a significant portion of the overall funding for this project, and we appreciate receiving provincial/federal funding that will assist in completing the project. We are grateful to be working with the regional district, First Nations and the provincial and federal governments towards the goal of completing an engineered structure that will benefit our community and visitors.”

The project is currently in the detailed design phase, and with construction planned to begin in late 2024 and complete in late 2025 or early 2026. At this time the project team is proceeding with a number of activities related to the detailed design of the mitigation structure, permitting and land tenure requirements, coordinating with key stakeholders and First Nations engagement and consultation activities.

Catiline Creek, and the community of Lillooet Lake Estates, lies within the unceded traditional territory of the Líl̓wat Nation. Since the project’s inception, an important priority for the SLRD has been to engage with Líl’wat Nation, through its land use referrals process. The SLRD sincerely appreciates the time and consideration that Líl̓wat Nation Land Use Referral Committee members are taking to review the project and is grateful for its conditional support. The project team looks forward to continuing to work with the Referral Committee to ensure that all referrals related to the various provincial and federal permits required for the project will be forthcoming for the Committee’s review, and that archaeological and environmental monitoring is conducted throughout the project. The SLRD is also working to keep Samahquam, Skatin Nations, Xa’xtsa-Douglas First Nation, the Lillooet Tribal Council and the St’át’imc Chiefs Council informed as the project moves forward.

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About the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District

Located in southwestern BC, the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) is a local government federation consisting of four member municipalities (the District of Lillooet, the District of Squamish, the Village of Pemberton and the Resort Municipality of Whistler) and four unincorporated, rural electoral areas (A, B, C, and D). Headquartered in Pemberton, which is the approximate geographic centre of the region, the SLRD delivers a wide range of local, regional and sub-regional services to approximately 50,496 residents (2021 Census as certified by the Minister of Municipal Affairs).

The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District is found within the traditional territories of several First Nations, including the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish), St'át'imc and Líl̓wat. Small parts of the SLRD also overlap with the traditional territories of the Stó:lō, Tsleil-Waututh, Nlaka'pamux, Tsilhqot'in, and Secwepemc Nations. While the SLRD does not provide direct services to the residents of the First Nations communities located within the region, the organization is committed to enhancing relations with the Indigenous communities and First Nations within whose territories the SLRD operates.