A new flood research group is looking to mitigate the effects of flooding in Quebec.
The group, called the Réseau Inondations intersectoriel du Québec, brings together 16 universities and about 120 researchers. With funding from the Quebec Research Fund, the group is working on flood maps and strategies to minimize the damage caused by flood, all while ensuring that flood information is readily available to the public.
The group says that most cities in Quebec are not sufficiently prepared for flood.
“About 80% of Quebec municipalities have to deal with floods,” group representative Suzanne King told CBC News.
King, who is a lead investigator for the research group and a psychiatry professor at McGill University, cited flooding incidents in 2017 – specifically the spring flood that occurred in Montreal’s West Island and in Drummondville – explaining that the province’s response to such events “is not always adequate.”
“Neither is the prevention and preparation before flooding happens,” she added.
According to King, about half of the people living in Quebec’s flood zones are not even aware of the risk – some even choose to ignore the risk. Worse, some municipalities “are not planning for the changes that are happening with climate change,” she remarked.
While similar flood prevention networks exist in Europe and in other countries, King believes that such groups should be more proactive in alleviating flood risk.
“It’s not enough that the scientists in an ivory tower know the best way to proceed or what is the best technology,” she mentioned.
“We’ve got to get that knowledge to the people who need it.”
To this end, Réseau Inondations intersectoriel du Québec is looking to pool its experts’ knowledge in a resource portal such as a website that the public can easily access to “create a more resilient Quebec,” King said.
