Since the destructive June 2013 floods that impacted southern Alberta, the Government of Alberta, professional organizations, businesses, community groups, NGOs and municipalities have evaluated Alberta’s flood management capacity. A robust flood forecasting program is a critical component in ensuring Alberta is prepared for future floods.
Improving Alberta’s forecasting program has been identified as an area of action for flood management in the province. In August 2013, WaterSMART Solutions published a collaborative paper titled, “The 2013 Great Alberta Flood: Actions to Mitigate, Manage and Control Future Floods”. Practitioners from across Alberta, Canada and the world participated in developing this report and collectively identified specific actions to mitigate, manage and control the impacts of extreme weather events such as floods and droughts. These actions were summarized into six overarching recommendations. The project “Flood Indicators: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” aligns with the recommendation that called for improving Alberta’s operational capacity to deal with potential extreme weather scenarios through better modelling and data management.
The impetus for the “Flood Indicators: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” project was the June 2013 floods, which prompted evaluation of Alberta’s flood response and management ability on a large-scale. The “Flood Indicators: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” project examined how Alberta and other jurisdictions – both Canadian and international – forecast flood events and to identify best practices that could be applied in Alberta. The research included in this project focused on identifying successes and areas for improvement in Alberta’s forecasting program. This research was followed by a review of flood forecasting programs including communication strategies, timing of warnings and the roles of government and technology. Additionally, notable successes were researched in select jurisdictions, including: British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, European Union, Netherlands, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Colorado (USA) and Japan.
Research findings and analysis from the “Flood Indicators: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” project are summarized in two reports. Jurisdictional research is presented in the report, “Flood Forecasting Jurisdictional Review: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta”. The findings from this jurisdictional review were presented at a February 2014 workshop hosted by Alberta Innovates – Energy and Environment Solutions. The workshop brought together flood forecasting experts from a variety of jurisdictions to discuss how Alberta’s flood forecasting program could be improved. Recommendations provided by experts in attendance at the workshop are summarized in the second project report titled, “Options for Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta: A Synthesis Report of the February 2014 Alberta Innovates – Energy and Environment Solutions ‘Flood Forecasting Methods and Models – Comparing Approaches and Best Practices’ Workshop”.
The purpose of the flood forecasting workshop was to explore and evaluate best practices, leading technologies and communications strategies that could be relevant to accurately monitor, assess and forecast flood potential in Alberta. A variety of presentations were given on topics including how the Alberta River Forecasting Centre operated during the 2013 flood, current hydrological and geomatics research in western Canada and flood forecasting programs in different jurisdictions such as British Columbia, Manitoba, Scotland and Netherlands.
The purpose of a flood forecasting program is to forecast flood events in order to provide sufficient warning to authorities and the public. A flood forecasting program includes the following components: data collection and monitoring; modelling and forecasting; warning construction and communication; and response and further dissemination.
A high-level comparative review of forecasting programs within Canada and around the world had not recently been completed, therefore, this project sought to fill that gap. The purpose of this project, however, was not to assess or critique the Alberta River Forecasting Centre’s ability to forecast the June 2013 floods, but rather to identify general areas for improvement in Alberta’s forecasting program.
The research conducted as part of this project focused on Alberta’s flood forecasting program and the challenges that Alberta is facing. These challenges include:
After completing the review of other Canadian and international jurisdictions, it became clear that many forecasting programs share similar structures as well as challenges. Many of these programs, however, also have unique characteristics that could be of interest to Alberta.
The hope is that the research findings from this project can act as a launching point for further research and action with the end goal of making Alberta’s flood forecasting program as robust as possible.
Both reports produced for the “Flood Indicators: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” project indicate a number of next steps that Alberta can pursue in the area of flood forecasting. The workshop made clear that in order for improvements to be realized, increased dialogue – not only between groups and universities, but also between governments – will be an important step to realizing the solutions proposed in the “Options for Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta: A Synthesis Report of the February 2014 Alberta Innovates – Energy and Environment Solutions ‘Flood Forecasting Methods and Models – Comparing Approaches and Best Practices’ Workshop” report.
Furthermore, research findings in the “Flood Forecasting Jurisdictional Review: Improving Flood Forecasting in Alberta” report indicate that continued support and resolve from policymakers, communities and individuals to address flood forecasting challenges is critically important. Despite the challenges described above, Alberta’s approach to flood forecasting is established and has been successful in the past. Areas such as data collection methods, modelling and data management share similarities with other jurisdictions that remain leaders in flood forecasting. Nonetheless, Alberta’s geography, climate and river systems pose challenges that need a well-rounded, state-of-the-art flood forecasting and warning dissemination system.
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Ross has extensive executive experience in Operations, Governance, Information Technology and Strategy at the board and senior management level including Mancal Corporation, Mancal Energy, Highridge Exploration and Atlantis Resources. He has worked in Oil and Gas, Coal, Commercial Real Estate, Portfolio Management, Recreation, Retail and Water and Wastewater Treatment. His experience is also geographically diverse having overseen operations in Canada, the United States, United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. Additionally, he has been on the board of companies with operations in Argentina, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Kazakhstan, and Russia. He has served on numerous Public, Private and Not for Profit Boards across a number of industries.
Ross has been active on several industry Boards and committees including the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) and The Schulich School of Engineering Industry Advisory Council at the Schulich School of Engineering.
Brian is a seasoned Cleantech entrepreneur with a proven history of successfully bringing complex water technologies to the market. With over 25 years of experience, he has led various organizations to achieve significant milestones in the industry.
Having started as the founding CEO of the Pressure Pipe Inspection Company (PPIC) and later taking the helm at the Water Technology Acceleration Project (WaterTAP), Brian’s entrepreneurial spirit has been instrumental in driving innovation and growth within the sector.
He is an active investor in the cleantech sector and has served on many boards including the Ontario Clean Water Agency.
Actively engaged in industry associations like AWWA, WEF, IWA, and ASCE, Brian enjoys collaborating with fellow professionals to promote advancements in the field.
Brian holds an undergraduate degree and a PhD in Physics from Queen’s University, which has provided him with a solid technical foundation. As a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors, he brings valuable insights to corporate governance.