Water Stewardship Information Sources
| Citation | Kerr Wood Leidal Consulting Engineers. 2015. Regional climate and hydrometric monitoring netwrok scoping study. Prepared for Regional District of Nanaimo. |
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| Organization | Regional District of Nanaimo |
| URL | http://www.rdn.bc.ca/dms/documents/dwwp-reports/region-wide-reports/rdn_regional_hydrometric_and_climate_monitoring_scoping_study_-_2015.pdf |
| Abstract/Description or Keywords | To meet this goal, the Action Plan recommends implementation of a Water Resource Inventory and Monitoring Program. In addition, the RDN Regional Water Budget Phase 1 project completed in 2013 recommended collection of additional climate and hydrometric data at key location to fill identified data gaps to better understand available surface and ground water resources. The purpose of this study is to move beyond the general recommendation of these plans and to identify, prioritize locations and identify potential partnerships to support additional climate and hydrometric (streamflow) stations within the region to improve the existing climate and hydrometric monitoring networks. Some of the key purposes for collection of climate and hydrometric data include: • Assessment of available surface water and ground water supplies for land development and community planning • local watershed scale hydrological evaluations for habitat conservation measures, design of water supply or other development; • interpreting water quality data to provide estimates of total loading rather than only concentrations of pollutants; • design flood estimates and rainfall intensities for drainage, stream crossings or flood protection design; • operational hydrology for seasonal water supply forecasting, • flood forecasting and warning, • watershed health tracking, • fire weather monitoring (for forestry operations and forest fire safety), • baseline monitoring for climate change impact assessment; and • other currently unknown future uses. Currently, the climate and hydrometric monitoring stations in the region are operated by a variety of agencies and stakeholders, ranging from Federal and Provincial Government to local Stewardship groups. The currently active stations in the RDN include: • Twelve hydrometric stations (most of which are on regulated streams and are used for monitoring of water supplies) • Seventeen climate stations (most of which are located along the coastal lowlands at elevations below 200 m) • Two active snow monitoring sites (one automated snow pillow and one manual snow course) |
| Information Type | report |
| Regional Watershed | Vancouver Island South |
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| Project status | complete |
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