 Please go ahead. Thank you and welcome everyone. I'm honored to to be here on the traditional territory of the Stolo peoples I'm also joined today by Chief Dalton Sins Silver of the Samath First Nation Minister of Agriculture Lana Popham Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Rob Fleming MLA for Abbotsford Mission Pam Alexis and the new mayor of Abbotsford Ross Siemens and former mayor of Abbotsford Henry Braun As we all know we're nearing the one-year anniversary of last November's atmospheric river event that caused catastrophic flooding One of the most devastating weather events in the history of our province It caused extensive flooding of communities washed away major roads significantly damaged farmland and impacted thousands of people The event also tragically caused five deaths and our thoughts are with the families and the loved ones of those individuals The flooding had far-reaching effects with more than 3,300 people in the Fraser Valley forced to evacuate their homes Today we're standing at the Sumas River main dyke one of two dykes that breached in the Fraser Valley last November and Led to floodwaters spilling into the Sumas prairie and Abbotsford Since last year's flooding emergency management BC funded temporary repairs to the dykes But some water continued to flow onto farmland through the summer and the fall We're very pleased that the city of Abbotsford with the support of the Samath First Nation is now moving forward with permanent repairs To the sumas dyke Emergency management BC is providing more than 1.6 million for repairs to the dyke through the disaster financial assistance program These repairs are expected to be complete by the end of this month. I Want to thank Chief Silver and former Mayor Brown for their consistent effort in working with the province in getting us here today and Having spoken with Mayor Siemens. I know he will bring the same vigor and energy as we continue to build back better together And on that I want to applaud Mayor Siemens for putting his name forward to continue this complex and challenging but important work With British Columbia and the federal government But most importantly with Chief Silver and the Samath First Nation Chief Alice Thompson and the Lacomel First Nation And Chief Alice McKay and the Matsquee First Nation We're encouraged by the collaborative work on solutions for flood mitigation in the sumas prairie And we will continue to support this work as we move forward Last year's flooding and landslides caused substantial sediment movement and changes to BC's river systems We've responded with an extensive program to move debris and address these changes And over 500 debris sites have been cleared so far And to prevent risks of future flooding locally more than 41 million Dollars in funding has been approved to repair and restore sites on the sumas river clayburn creek Kill guard creek and the vetter canal There is more work that continues to be underway to remove sediment repair damaged dykes and river channels And install new culverts Our government is also working across borders to identify solutions with our neighbors to the south In march Premier Horgan and washington governor inslee announced a trans boundary initiative to respond to the more frequent and severe flooding Of the nooksack river caused by climate change This initiative will bring together the resources and experts needed to help identify Evaluate and advance solutions that will keep people and communities safe Together we are now working on establishing a governance structure that includes municipal indigenous provincial state and federal officials to advance the priorities identified under the trans boundary initiative The ongoing risk of flooding is very real I want to help ensure that communities businesses and families can be safe when they occur Our government's flood strategy aims to understand these risks Enhanced preparedness and response and invest in flood resilience public engagement for the flood for the bc flood strategy has already begun And we want to hear from individuals businesses first nations and local governments to ensure we build strong plans for the future The flood strategy survey is open until january 6th 2023 And I encourage everyone to participate and share their experience and knowledge Planning for the future is important But as we continue to recover from last falls flooding We know that recovery doesn't just mean rebuilding roads and buildings. It's about people Through the disaster financial assistance program. We've dispersed over 24 million dollars to help people repair and rebuild their homes and businesses 10 million dollars of this was for 1,300 claims to individuals small businesses farms and charitable organizations right here in the Fraser valley I know it has not been easy for those waiting for support funding insurance payments and needed repairs And have we seen the clear challenges in our disaster financial assistance program? That is why we've been making changes to the process including digitizing applications and providing funding through e-transfer This builds on the changes that we made earlier this year to expand eligibility so we could support more people and communities We continue working on modernizing the disaster financial assistance regulation to address gaps and challenges And ensure that when emergencies strike, we are prepared to be more responsive even faster As we near the anniversary of such a devastating event Those impacted may still have vivid memories of their experiences And may well be concerned about the potential for flooding in the future Particularly as we continue seeing the effects of climate change and increased severe weather events As we undertake our work to build climate resilient communities Our government is also prepared to mobilize and respond immediately to flooding in the province when and where needed Although all levels of government have been working tirelessly to ensure your communities recover There is so much more work that is still needed We know that we cannot do this alone and we look forward to continuing to work in partnership with first nations And local and federal governments to build a stronger more prepared province for everyone I want to thank everyone for being here today and I now like to turn things over to chief dalton silver of the samath first nation my language My name is my name chief dalton silver of the samath I have to acknowledge and impart chokoyak as well to choloac peoples I want to thank minister farnworth and I want to acknowledge the minister's president the mla's Former mayor and and mayor semen's I congratulated him earlier. Um, I think Over the past I've made a lot of noise. I think in the in the mayors and uh, and others know that, um The noise I've been making is about our participation in the planning Of things like this Of many different initiatives on our lands and territories sakh tamakh as we say in our language The lands that are sacred to us. I see you know the the wildlife and things that are evident here today The swans were endangered at one time There were two eagles in a tree when we were walking down to visit the site and that's indicative of Of our people's presence on the land as well Over the thousands of years and I think this is a start We've we've said in the past that we haven't been involved as much as we'd like to And I commend the provincial government For the legislation around the un declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples that will see our involvement In the planning stages For something like this the catastrophe that happened. I have friends and neighbors that are that are still struggling now Very good friends from years ago That are still getting back on their feet on the prairie out here, which was once to mass lake We had a very sad occasion In our community A young nephew who Who passed tragically But you know what they showed a video of him and he talked about It was a catastrophe to our people years ago and it's a catastrophe to what happened the disaster here a year ago There are many people still recovering and I think the work that needs to be done Needs to be done with all of us together And I'm thankful to be included here. It's an honor to be standing here What the representatives of this province and the representatives of the city as well and I I just want to say that I'm thankful to be here and I I'm honored to be here and I really do hope that we can move forward together and Create a better place for our people in the future and the wildlife as well Thank you chief silver and now I'd like to ask Mayor Siemens from from avasford to to take the podium as well. Thank you Thank you It's a an honor to be here and um, I just wanted to thank my friend chief silver for his kind words and um Just acknowledged that our families have known each other for A few generations and we've worked well together and I look forward minister far and worth minister Fleming minister popham and mla alexis And I have already acknowledged chief silver, but I'll acknowledge you again Thank you And on behalf of the city of avasford and our council. It is a pleasure to be here today As the new mayor of avasford I'm very happy to continue the important work done by our previous mayor and council in advocating for the residents of this great city Though we are approaching the one-year anniversary of the historic flooding event of last fall The effects of the flood are still very much being felt by our farmers and residents on sumas ferry The part of the the sumas stake that we're standing on today is the farm my wife kelly grew up on So I know firsthand The how devastating the floods were And for so many and how worried and nervous many of the people still are We know that the need is great and we know that there is a lot of important work that needs to be done Which is why i'm so pleased with the progress being made here today As a city we continue to advocate for the needs of our community and we'll work with all levels of government Including our local indigenous leadership to implement solutions That best protect all the people in this area from future flood events I would like to express our city's gratitude to the province of british columbia For the commitment to helping the residents of avasford and specifically To the ministers here today for making this important investment in flood mitigation Infrastructure it's sincerely appreciated Thank you again for being here for your interest and for your care and we look forward to working together In the future. So thanks very much Thank you, and we're now able to take questions from the the media Thank you minister just a reminder to reporters on the phone, uh, please press press star one to enter the queue Uh, please also remember to take your phone off mute. You are not audible until your name is called We are going to start with, uh Qna on site first So if any reporter wants to ask something to minister, please come to the microphone Introduce yourself sell your media and ask the question and you have one question and one follow up Hi there, my name is michelle bernard with ctv Minister you talked about changes to disaster financial assistance, but Some people still say that they have fallen through the cracks. They're simply not getting the help that they Need and it's been almost a year. What do you say to those people who whose homes look very similar to they To what they look like almost a year ago About there have been some significant changes to the disaster financial assistance program Working with the federal government one We've expanded the the the amount that you're eligible for in terms of on the housing side from 300 to 400 thousand dollars That lines it up with the with where the federal government is at We've also expanded the program and changed the requirements in terms of business income small business income So that all you have to do now show 10 000 dollars Whereas before it used to have to be that the income from your property have to be at least 50 percent Those have been significant changes Along with changes on the agricultural side So there has been a lot of changes to make to expand the program so that more people could apply About 84 of the dfa applications have been processed the ones that there are still some that we know are outstanding Those tend to be those particular ones tend to be Either more complicated or there's information still required or some particular issues around them But more than 24 million dollars has already gone out So many dykes in bc are not up to standard Is this Like are improvements to those dykes one of you the government's top priorities or where do they stand because I know that the funding is dependent I understand from the former mayor on where the province listed as a priority So right now there's two things taking place one We're ensuring that we've got the dykes being prepared Repair such as sumas dykes so it's being able to to to be able to stand Any any any events that we we have this fall and going forward And so that the work that is that is on underway here and in some other locations as well At the same time we've been preparing on the the flood Diking and flood strategy that the ministry of force is working on That work is underway. That's part of the the consultation that's out there right now in terms of having people putting their input in Also along with that in terms of dealing with the dykes some of the challenges around dykes For example are in relation to the flooding and the sedimentation that is taking place Along a number of the streams and creeks that we have in different parts of the province We're particularly here in the lower mainland. So for example, the day before yesterday I was out at Deroche Where the the the sedimentation has been so intense that it has actually pushed the creek over To the toe of the dyke and so the work is underway right now there to be able to to to change that To remove that sedimentation and get the stream Back into its normal course and take the pressure on that dyke and ensure that that dyke is safe So all of that kind of work is is is is underway, but there's an awful lot more to do I mean we have a significant number of dykes in this province and it's going to take it's going to take time to to get that done Thank you. Do we have more questions on site? Thank you. Hey joel ballard here with cbc um, we heard back in june the approval of Mitigation plans here in abbotsford with a price tag of 2.8 billion. This might be a question for the mayor or for you minister farnworth, I'm wondering The outgoing mayor said, you know, this isn't going to happen overnight We got to get money from all the different levels of government. Where are we on that path? How much have we secured and how much more do we need? Well, I guess we can both comment on that But I can tell you that we're working very closely with the city of abbotsford and with the first nations Um, uh, somath uh, lachamel for example on the on on the kind of work that has to take place Abbotsford has done a Plan, uh, there's some priorities. They've identified at the same time the province is doing its It's been doing its diking stretcher Strategy for example and also on the issues around the nooksack river. So we're working very closely. It's still this time. There's a lot of Uh, I would say developmental work that is that is currently underway But what's important is is that we're getting these repairs In place and at the same time doing that work on the longer term strategy that needs to be in place to protect this area Thank you. Do have a follow-up Um, thank you. Yeah, sorry go ahead from our perspective at the city This work is vitally important and we sincerely appreciate it. We also are advocating for the sumas river pump That would actually move the water out and over the floodgates along here, so that's Sort of the achilles heel for us right now is as we're advocating for that pump station To happen. So um, that is Sort of what our priority is in our advocacy workers Thank you. Do you have a follow-up? I do Yes, so if you could approach later, uh, do we have more questions on site? If not, we are going to the phones now First it's gonna be amad agahi from global news Thank you. Yeah, thank you so much questions for minister farm work. Um Just need to ask you if you have a reaction to the 30 police service union pledge Release today saying they will not join the RCMP if the city police service is disbanded members claiming that In their pledge that they're now in a toxic environment Anything from you to say to the members there? Um, first no workplace should become a toxic environment and uh, And everyone deserves to have a respectful workplace And I've seen some of the issues that have been on twitter and quite frankly I I think, you know, that's just despicable that those kinds of things taking place That being said what I can tell you is is that the new mayor of uh, syrian council Have said that they want to to transition back to the RCMP Um, there's a lot of work that needs to be involved with that and I've indicated that I need to see a plan On how they propose to do that because as solicitor general My key responsibility is to show Is to maintain adequate and effective policing and that applies not just to Surrey, but right across the province And so I need to see a plan from the city of Surrey on how they intend to do that As well as from the the RCMP in terms of how that they would intend to restat And I have not yet received those plans But in the meantime what I can say is that no one should be having to deal with a with a toxic with a toxic workplace Um, I do have a follow-up I'm okay. Thank you Okay, so next question is any smart from canadian press Hi, sir. I'm just on the phone. So I wonder if you could clarify was it 1.6 million or billion? and um Given that Abbotsford had asked for 2.8 billion or outlined this plan Um, understanding the federal government would also play a role I wonder if you can give me a like this is we're kind of getting these piecemeal and announcements What's the total amount that the BC government so far has? put towards diking in Abbotsford So there's this project here, which is underway. Uh, we know that they're going on this 24.6 million has gone out in terms of bfa Um, um payments at the same time in terms of diking across the province. You're looking at, uh, well Reports have have have been around in between seven and nine billion dollars altogether What's important is that I know I Abbotsford has identified a number of of a strategy approach That's about two points. I think 2.4 billion dollars and so all of those things are all of those things are are are projects or Or strategies that that need to be put in place and it's going to have to be put in place over a number of years So you've got short-term ones medium term and long-term ones And so this we're here today are these are the repairs that are needed to make sure that the sumas dyke is in place At the same time, uh, Abbotsford has identified near priorities and we're working closely with them And first nations on how we deal with with with with the with the diking and the flood challenges in this particular area But at the same time, there's also the longer term strategy of dealing with the with with Dykes around the province and that's where the diking strategy is with the ministry of force and that work is underway In terms of the overall of five billion dollars was earmarked under dfa by the federal government for British Columbia Uh, and we expect and the federal government has expected that there will be additional costs on top of that In some cases, you know, there's still a lot of work that's underway And there's still a lot of costs that are being that are they're still being determined in terms of what their payers are going to have to be Amy, do you have a follow-up? um, yes the uh The build back better together collaborative which describes itself as an indigenous land group of organization and experts um put out a statement today saying they would like to see The five billion dollars dedicated to the approaches they've outlined including redesigning programs and regulations to do regional cooperation on infrastructure just wondering if you had a response to that whether you would be looking at their Uh proposals and dedicated funding towards that. Yeah, no, we've we've been working very closely with them And so there's a number of things that are underway First off is the complete overhaul of the emergency program act in the province of british columbia And that's being co-developed with first nations And it's built around the sendai framework Principles the key one of the key of which is to one is to understand the risk And so there's a lot of work underway there, but also to be building back better So that's very much going to be the framework going forward at the same time We've been working very closely with the federal government on the df on the disaster financial assistance assistance program which assists Uh the province and there by working with uh with minister blare and the federal government 15 of that money that coming is to be able to build back better. So, um, That's very much What's involved in terms of not only just the recovery right now But in terms of how we deal with disasters in the future And that is involved very closely working With with first nations on that and the the the the issues that they have been raising Thank you. Uh, so last uh on the queue is just for two bc it news Yeah Yeah, oh Hi, so I'm curious I would like to ask Do the provincial and federal government plan to build and implement a comprehensive series of permanent flood relief systems for cities towns and villages along the Fraser River Well, that's what this project is part of today is is part of the the the diking and flood protection system that we have in place And that's why working with local governments in terms of identifying What are the local priorities that are needed in place working with indigenous nations in terms of what are the key Critical priorities that they need to see in place Not just here along the Fraser River, but in fact right along the course of the uh of the Fraser of the Fraser It involves not just local government, but it involves the fish strategies as well It means for example that pump stations in the future need to be fish friendly It needs that looking at things such as culverts on choke points need to be Either expanded or they need to be replaced by by by bridges, for example It's a whole range of initiatives And it it it involves dealing with what the local situation in those communities is It also is involving the fact that that we need to have a province wide Diking strategy that the decision to to download dykes to local governments more than 20 years ago Was not the right way to go And that means recognizing that some communities have been able to maintain them others have not And it's identifying where those areas are and then having in place the ability to deal with that Um, uh over time. Uh, so as I keep saying there's a short medium and long term Jasper, do you have a follow-up And what communities are you guys currently in consultation and coordination with to improve One relief system in the effort that you've already mentioned Communities all along the the phrase are the Abyssal is working, you know very closely with Abyssal We've met I've met with the mayor of of mission. I've met with the mayor and council of chilewa regional districts chief silver for example There's it's it's It's all of us in this together is the best way to describe it Both at the federal the provincial the local and first nations working together On this particular issue and when it comes to the nooksack working with our counterparts Across in washington state and the us federal government That's all the questions we have today. This concludes today's events. Thank you everyone for joining And have a good weekend