After nearly eight years of pursuing funding, Kimberley City has finally secured $400,000 to conduct a study on the potential impact of wildfires on its drinking water supply. The initiative stems from the 2018 Meachen Creek fire, which highlighted concerns about the susceptibility of local water sources.
Mathieu Bourbonnais, a University of British Columbia (UBC) Okanagan assistant professor and co-director of the Centre for Wildfire Coexistence, emphasized the importance of not taking drinking water for granted. He noted that while people often assume access to clean water is guaranteed, it is actually dependent on the environment, which is being altered by wildfires.
Kimberley’s drinking water is sourced from the Mark Creek and Matthew Creek watersheds. The project’s objective is to identify potential risks and develop strategies to mitigate them without compromising the water supply.
The recent Matthew Creek wildfire, which prompted an evacuation alert for the city, reignited concerns about the vulnerability of Kimberley’s watersheds. Despite this, wildland fire ecologist Bob Gray believes the fire’s impact on water movement in the watershed will be minimal, as the severely burned areas were limited and situated higher up on the slopes.
Looking ahead, Bourbonnais and his team at UBC Okanagan are collaborating with the city and Gray to simulate potential fire behavior in the Mark Creek watershed. The study will assess forest conditions, weather patterns, and climate change projections up to 2060, while also examining the potential effects of a severe fire on water quality and streamflows.
The research aims to not only identify areas where forest thinning and prescribed burning can reduce wildfire risks but also to address the challenges associated with these mitigation measures. The project, funded in part by the Columbia Basin Trust and the city, is expected to span two years and will provide valuable insights for future wildfire mitigation efforts in Kimberley and beyond.