Sussex flood mitigation ‘has to be a top need’: New Brunswick Conservative MP
The do-nothing version of the project showed a flood could impact 670 homes and result in $119 million of damages, $85 million from residential properties.
The MP for Sussex says the town’s flood mitigation project is a “top need” as residents dig out from the most recent round of flooding Feb. 29.
Trout Creek overflowed after rainstorms pounded Sussex with 96 millimetres of rain over two days, leading to the evacuations of 36 people and weeks of cleanup for area residents.
The town has submitted a $38 million flood mitigation proposal to the federal government, but is waiting for it to be reviewed.
Fundy Royal MP Rob Moore, a Conservative, said the project is something he’s been having meetings about “for years now” and said Thursday that it “has to be a top need” in the New Brunswick context.
“It has to be a whole of government approach with these things. We’ve raised it with individuals within the federal cabinet ... to indicate how important this, not just for the Town of Sussex but for the province of New Brunswick,” Moore said. “This is an important piece and we want the federal government to come to the table on it.”
The federal government would be on the hook for about 40 per cent of the project, Moore said, with provincial and municipal governments footing the rest.
In January, he wrote to Sean Fraser, the federal minister of infrastructure, calling the project “essential to the viability of the town.” Moore said he met with Mayor Marc Thorne after the flood and met with Sussex-fundy-st. Martins MLA Tammy Scottwallace last week to discuss the plan.
“Certainly, in my view, this would be an eligible project when you look at the criteria, the question is, is the government going to fund it?” he said. “There’s a lot of demands out there, but there’s a lot of need. When I look at New Brunswick, this has to be a top need in terms of mitigation.”
THE PROJECT
Sussex CAO Scott Hatcher said March 1 that the project was ready to go in 2022, but there was a technology issue preventing the project from being submitted by that year’s deadline, and it went in the following summer.
The proposal, which involves digging channels to divert overflow into the Kennebecasis River, saves $5.40 in flood damages for every dollar saved on recovery, Hatcher said.
Other suggestions including dredging the river “wouldn’t work,” because ultimately the layer of time that brings wouldn’t account for the “extreme event flow” they want to redirect upstream, Hatcher said.
“We want to implement a solution that takes that wafer of water on top and moving it in a different direction,” he said, preventing over-ground damage. “The secondary benefit is that the ground water that moves sideways through the gravel zones under the river, that’s kind of controlled, as well.”
The do-nothing version of the project showed a flood could impact 670 homes and result in $119 million of damages, $85 million from residential properties, Hatcher said.
Moore said, though the dollars make sense, the benefit isn’t just monetary.
“It’s money well spent, but it’s not just a dollars and cents issue, it’s a sense of security,” he said. “People who are repeatedly having their town flooded, there’s a great sense of insecurity there every time you have a major rainfall coming.”
The recent flood “further illustrates it has to be done,” Moore said, saying disaster mitigation programs are for “this exact scenario.”
‘HIGH DEMAND’ FOR FUNDING: OTTAWA
Federal infrastructure ministry spokesperson Caleb Spassov declined to comment on individual funding applications. He wrote in an email that projects under the disaster mitigation and adaptation fund are assessed on eligibility and program criteria “while we work closely with partners to assess their needs.”
Spassov said mitigation is a key infrastructure priority and the fund is in “very high demand.” He said the department is working with applicants across the country to “finalize funding agreements and announce further investments” in infrastructure programs to mitigate climate change impacts.
“We are sending our very best to everyone impacted by the flood events in Eastern Canada,” Spassov wrote.
Tim Warmington, spokesperson for the federal public safety ministry, said that disaster finance recovery is available to help assist provincial governments cover the costs of financial assistance, including up to 90 per cent of eligible costs. Provincial governments design the financial assistance programs and the federal government then reimburses the province.
DAMAGE ADDING UP IN SUSSEX
Scott-wallace, also Progressive Conservative minister for tourism, heritage and culture, said the government makes the decision to activate the program at a threshold of $3.1 million. As of Wednesday last week, she said 91 people, 62 from Sussex, have reported $971,000 in damage, which she expects to go up once damage estimates to municipal and provincial infrastructure come in.
Regarding flood mitigation, Scott-wallace said the province is “ready to say, what can we be doing to get this over the finish line.” She said the regional development corporation is working with the town to iron out details, as well as the infrastructure ministry.
She said it’s not “new to me, this situation,” going back to covering previous floods as a reporter, including the 2014 flood. That disaster caused $18 million in damage and 1,450 evacuations and was a “devastating time,” she said.