Delta,Surreycreatingtheirown‘livingdike’

Sandor Gyarmati

sgyarmati@delta-optimist com

It’s an innovative, green approach to coastal flood protection, but can it help reduce the enormous bill facing the City of Delta to upgrade its extensive diking system?

Media were recently invited to visit a pilot site of the Mud Bay Nature-based Foreshore Enhancements Project, which is testing what’s being called a ‘living dike.’

The cities of Surrey and Delta partnered with the Semiahmoo First Nation on the pilot project, creating a natural dike by adding sediment and planting native salt marsh species on the foreshore.

The project is valued at $1.4 million and is funded in part by the Province of B C and the Government of Canada through the Disaster Mitigation and

Saturday, July 22

FREE ADMISSION

GATES: 11am • AIRSHOW: 12-3:30pm

Adaptation Fund.

More marsh will be planted over time to help the natural marshes lining Boundary Bay adapt to sea level rise The City of Surrey says it will follow an adaptive management approach and monitor the site over time, making adjustments as needed.

Various stabilization techniques are being tested including sand berms, oyster shell bags, brushwood dams and rock berms to keep the vegetation in place. The results and lessons learned from the studies will be used to inform the design and construction of the full “living dike” project in Surrey, which will span one km

Construction of that full dike is anticipated to take place between 2025 and 2027, provided all permits are secured on time and studies are successful. A pilot project is also coming to Delta

“Delta is pleased to be a part of this innovative partnership and nature-based solution in our efforts to protect our environment and the resilience of foreshores across our communities,” said Delta Mayor George Harvie in a news release.

“This project represents a bold and forwardthinking approach to safeguarding our communities from coastal flooding. Through collaboration with partners, experts, and our community, and thanks to funding from the provincial and federal governments, we are taking proactive steps to ensure the long-term resilience of our coastal areas, while forging a path toward a sustainable future.”

Surrey’s project is located along the shoreline west of Mud Bay

Park, south of Highway 99, and will extend approximately 790 metres along the foreshore.

In Delta, a 250-linearmetre section of raised salt marsh will be built at the foreshore along Boundary Bay near 96th Street.

The salt marsh may be able to absorb wave energy reducing the overall wave height that will assist in reducing the dike design elevation and possibly lengthen the timelines for dike raising activities, according to Delta’s engineering department

During discussion on the province’s British Columbia Flood Strategy Intentions Paper earlier this year, a precursor to the development of a provincial flood strategy, Engineering Director Steven Lan told Delta council the estimated cost, so far, for dike raising and seismic improvements by 2100 is at more than $1 9 billion, with the first phase alone, excluding seismic improvements, tabbed at $350 million.