Spring flooding, it seems, is our new normal. After several decades of relative steadiness from the river levels, waterfront communities throughout the Ottawa River watershed have now seen significant floods in 2017, 2019, 2023, and now 2026.
For many, the process of securing valuables, stocking up on food and water, and filling and stacking sand bags with neighbours has almost become muscle memory, now accepted as the price to be paid for living in this corner of the world.
It’s not that this adapting has not been without pain. The stress of watching the river levels inch
up your lawn, the trauma of being asked to abandon your home until waters recede, the grief of losing your home altogether – these experiences are still relived by many Pontiac residents every spring. Not to mention the financial costs that come with protecting and repairing your home.
But the people who spoke with THE EQUITY over the past week seemed to approach the prospect of another spring flood as status quo. Most homes previously flooded have been moved or lifted. Pumps are readily available. Flood levels have been marked on the insides of people’s garages. Residents now know how this goes, and are largely prepared.
The mechanics of adapting to a changing climate is one thing. To-do lists, contingency plans and forecasts can get you part of the way, though even the forecasting methods used to predict river levels have missed the mark this year. Nature, it turns out, is unpredictable.
Understanding the ‘why’ behind these floods is more complicated. A lengthy FAQ section on the Ottawa River Planning Board’s website offers insight into the most common questions and suspicions as to what is causing the recent surge in spring flood events.
Is flooding the new norm? How are dam facilities along the Ottawa River managed? Are hydro companies making a profit from flooding conditions? Are communities along the shore of the Ottawa River being sacrificed to protect the Montreal region? How is climate change expected to impact flooding along the Ottawa River? Could expanded or additional reservoirs prevent future flooding?
And with these questions come proposed solutions. Our own warden is making the case for a new $2-billion reservoir to be built on the Quebec side upstream of Swisha to help manage the flow, to be paid for by Ontario, Quebec and the federal government, three entities with a long history of working together in perfect harmony.
Sarcasm aside, a couple billion is pennies, really, when you consider the amount of money that has been spent over the last decade on prevention and repairs to property along the length of the river.
Now this and a litany of other proposed solutions are floating around social media as folks try to bring a sense of order to the chaos. Feeling this helpless in the face of such destructive power is not pleasant. Everyone wants a solution that will be relatively cheap, painless and that will not demand we change where, or how, we live.
In difficult times like these it’s worth highlighting the good that goes on in the community. From the locals of all ages filling sand bags to protect their neighbours, to the municipal staff working around the clock to support their residents, Pontiac now knows the drill. It is at once beautiful and concerning to see how quickly we, as humans, can adapt to change and reorganize ourselves to ensure life as we know it can continue. Our survival is dependent on this ability to adapt. But when a once existential threat is normalized as status quo, is the threat gone, or have we just numbed ourselves to it?