Photo: The Kettle Pond behind the Visitor Information Centre is fast becoming a mud puddle as a low snow year and lack of rains means the Tumbler Ridge area is experiencing drought.
While Dawson Creek—the actual creek—has stopped flowing for lack of water and is at drought level five, he Tumbler Ridge area is only at drought level four.
While recent rains have reduced the direct fire risk for the moment, it has done little to change the current drought rating. As of May 16, Flatbed was at a near record low flow, moving 1.69 cubic metres of water per second.
Historically, the average flow on May 16 is 13.19 m3/s, and has been as high as 240 m3/s.
That means that Flatbed is 11.5 cubic metres below average, or only at about 13 percent its average flow.
A second stream flow monitor is set up on the Murray River, which is also at record low levels.
The Murray is currently moving 20.1 cubic metres per second, while the average is 78.08, meaning it is down 58.45 m3/s, or at about a quarter it’s normal flow.
Meanwhile, one watershed over, the Kiskatinaw is at 2.38 m3/s. It’s average flow is 43.41. That’s barely five percent its usual level, putting that watershed at drought level five.
The largest river in the region, the Peace, is at 1220 m3/s, down from 1731 m3/s, or 70 percent its usual flow.
Most of the Northeast—from Fort Nelson to Kakwa—is at level four, comprising 16.6 percent of the total area of BC, and three catchment basins. However, the area around Dawson Creek and Fort St John—about 2.6 percent of the province—is at drought level five.
Last year, much of the region hit level four in July, level five by August, and stayed there for most of the year.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
