Municipalities in the Okanagan Similkameen and the Regional District are applying for a grant to get training and equipment to quickly respond to flooding with Tiger Dams.
The RDOS has applied for the $600,000 grant for the region, which would go towards training and the purchase of two fully equipped Tiger Dam trailers.
The trailers would be stored at two ends of the RDOS' territory in order to be rapidly deployed in the case of flooding.
Part of the goal of the grant is for the RDOS to be less reliant on sandbags, which are less sustainable and cost-effective in comparison.
The Lower Similkameen Indian Band has partnered with the RDOS on the grant application, and the training is expected to include members of the Penticton Indian Band, Upper Similkameen Indian Band and Osoyoos Indian Band.
The Village of Keremeos and Town of Osoyoos are also partners on the project.
Director and Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne raised a concern over the costs to maintain the Tiger Dams, compared to letting the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness provide and be responsible for deploying their own in an emergency.
RDOS staff responded by saying that owning the Tiger Dams would allow for a faster response to flooding.
"Unfortunately, deployment from EMCR here could take forever, be very much late to the game and could never come," said staff.
Other alternatives like HESCO flood barriers were considered but were deemed more complex for maintenance and deployment compared to the Tiger Dam.
Okanagan Falls Director Matt Taylor asked whether they'd be appropriate for deploying along Shuttleworth Creek and other areas.
Coyne noted that Tulameen and other communities had found success in deploying Tiger Dams in the past against flooding.
The application for the grant funding was approved in a unanimous vote.
