As the snowpack in the higher elevations around the Okanagan currently sits at 131 percent of normal (and still growing), compared to last year's 78 percent of normal, there is a real concern that Okanagan residents could be in for another flood this spring.
However, the Ministry of Environment is taking steps to prevent that from happening. They are currently using floodgates to drain 1.5 centimeters of water out of Okanagan Lake each day.
To address public concerns, Section Head of Public Safety and Protection Shaun Reimer says despite the heavy snowpack, there's no guarantee we'll see a flood like we did in spring of 2017.
"In 1999 we had a higher snowpack than we did now," says Reimer. "But there was no lake flooding in that year. The lake didn't even quite get up to our annual target."
Even if there is no flood, other environmental risks exist from the snowpack melting and going downwards, such as surrounding creeks overflowing and exposing too much sediment.