With all this rain, it’s hard to imagine that our island’s natural water systems are vulnerable. Looking to other islands in our region and recognizing changing climates, we absolutely need to be working to protect and preserve our below-ground fresh water.

We have recently received notice from the Real Estate Foundation of BC that we were awarded a grant to conduct an aquifer health assessment for Cortes to progress this work here. 

Through this project, we will be bringing on consultants that have done similar studies for rural island communities.  We aim to map the aquifers on Cortes and assess their recharge rates as well as how much water is being withdrawn from them. 

In April 2023 we hosted a learning forum with other island communities and experts to gather information on their experiences. You can hear the podcast of that discussion at: https://soundcloud.com/the-ecoreport/water-housing-forum-folkuxchs

Through this project, we aim to understand areas of the Island where aquifers need to be recharged, or water conserving development prioritized in the years ahead. 

Please let us know if you’d be interested in joining a committee with CHS to guide this work.

There was an aquifer assessment completed in 2019 for the Rainbow Ridge Land that might also be of interest. It can be accessed here: https://cortescommunityhousing.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Elanco-Rainbow-Ridge-Hydrogeology-Report-finalized-2024.pdf