A town study is proposing berms be constructed along Great Lakes Boulevard and near Wilmot Crescent, to protect vulnerable properties from flooding should Sheldon Creek overflow its banks.
As many as 67 Bronte properties are at risk of flooding – nearly half at risk of major flooding – should severe storms, heavy snow or ice jams cause the creek to spill over.
That’s the conclusion of a flood mitigation study in the works since 2019 and open to public comment until Jan. 16.
Berms are proposed for atop an existing berm along the town-owned Great Lakes Boulevard right-of-way, as well as for town-owned property in Spruce Park, along the edge of vulnerable Wilmot Crescent residential properties.
The barriers could be structural walls or earthen berm/wall combinations, ranging in height from 0.5m to 1.5 m and built to blend into the existing landscape, according to Jill Stephen, the town’s director of transportation and engineering.
But at-risk property owners on Shoreline Drive won’t get any physical protection from flood waters. Instead, the study recommends developing emergency preparedness plans to monitor provide property owners with floodproofing suggestions they can implement themselves.
Those suggestions are similar to ones arising from a flood mitigation study for the Joshua Creek area completed earlier this fall.
The plan also calls for town monitoring of a flood-prone section along Rebecca Street, with the intent to close the roadway should "the flood risk reach a critical threshold."
Building code changes, help from upper levels of government necessary, say ward councillors
The berms, like regional initiatives including backflow valve and downspout disconnect programs, will help protect residents from water, says Ward 1 councillor Sean O’Meara. But in a world of climate change and increasing development, he believes bigger picture solutions are needed.
As the demand for intensification and increasing building density results in more roofs, driveways and other impermeable areas, O’Meara says the problems for downstream locations like Bronte will only increase.
“Being the lowest government on the pole, we’re trying to do what we can do within our realm of abilities,” he says. “We need help from the province, and we need help from the feds. We need to look at the (Ontario) Building Code and see what we can do to make more permeable surfaces and get this rainwater displaced to the proper places.”
He added that he and fellow Ward 1 councillor Beth Robertson are also pushing for the reconstruction of Lakeshore Road West, to replace ditches with a stormwater management system that will effectively absorb water flowing downstream toward the lake.
Flooding biggest risk for Canadian homeowners
Last September, a few months before this fall's historic flooding in British Columbia destroyed homes, businesses and highways, a national report warned Canadians of the dangers of flood water.
The Canadian Institute for Climate Choices noted that flooding is the single largest cause of damage and loss to Canadian homes and buildings, with risks expected to increase dramatically due to climate change.
“As sea levels rise and rainfall increases, flood damage to homes and buildings could increase fivefold in the next few decades and by a factor of ten by the end of the century, with costs as high as $13.6 billion annually,” noted the independent, non-partisan expert organization in its report.
It urged policy makers to update codes, regulations and funding decisions to determine what gets built and how it is maintained.
“Our findings suggest that to ensure new and existing infrastructure is ‘future-proofed,’ investment must dramatically shift toward making infrastructure more resilient,” said the report.