New guidelines have been released to help B.C.'s coastal communities update floodplain area maps and adapt to rising sea levels.

The report, Coastal Floodplain Mapping Guidelines and Specifications, recommends standards for topographic mapping and identifies engineering requirements for establishing building elevations in coastal areas. It also includes a sample floodplain map showing potential floodplain areas to the year 2100, along with an engineering design brief.

This information will help urban planners and local government officials incorporate rising sea levels into flood-hazard area land-development decisions, such as official community plans, zoning, subdivisions and building permits. The work has been made possible by a $60,000 contribution from the Province and Natural Resources Canada's Regional Adaptation Collaborative Program, which facilitates climate change adaptation planning and decision-making at the regional level.

The new guidelines complement a report released last May on how rising sea levels will affect coastal B.C. over the next century, titled Climate Change Adaption Guidelines for Sea Dikes and Coastal Flood Hazard Land Use.

To view the reports, visit: http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wsd/public_safety/flood/structural.html

For more information on Natural Resources Canada's Regional Adaptation Collaborative Program, visit: http://adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca/collab/index_e.php

Media Contact:

Cheekwan Ho
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.
250 356-5261