Real Estate Talks

Can Alberta flooding happen in BC?

“Unbelievable” “Record high” “Never seen before” "Surreal" Welcome to the new world of climate change.

Calgary is evacuated. They even turned out the lights. Where will the people go? For how long? Calgary Stampede is underwater. The Flames arena is a write-off. Edmonton is next. Property damage in many billions.

Stephen Harper shows up.

What's going to happen to those toxic pools of waste products placed next to the rivers in the oil sand areas? Will the toxic waste spill into the flood? Where would it end up?

Pay back for climate change?

What happened is that a massive warm front from the tropics pushed its way north all along the prairies. In the Rocky Mountains, it met colder air and dumped its load.

Is Calgary sustainable if this happens every 10 years? Would corporate HQ move to Vancouver? Will all those emigrants move back to BC? Buy Vancouver!!!

Can this happen to coastal cities like Vancouver?

,,, just in case you missed the videos on the news.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Photos ... story.html

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Photos ... story.html

I think in terms of Richmond, real estate prices for homes and town homes there will drop significantly due to the low lying area and if they ever have an earthquake then richmond will be pretty much under water. Definitely a downward trend in homes in Richmond for sure. Pretty much a downward trend everywhere these past few weeks, lots of listings not moving.

In Coquitlam, many folks who bought near the river are probably looking to get to higher ground soon realizing it's just a matter of time.

yes - Richmond definitely would be cause for concern and worse because they not only border on two arms of a big river but also the sea.

I would also worry about Fort Langley. There is a reason why there is a dike there.

The Weather Networks offers this insight into what happened. The jet stream stalled with a high pressure ridge in the north, A low pressure zone formed in Southern Alberta which drew in warm air from the Gulf of Mexico 4,000 km away.

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/a ... rain/8124/

The warm air dropped its load when it reached the Rockies. Most of it fell or drained into Alberta.

Suggests that it could also happen to BC west of the Rockies. Though, IMO, bad events are more likely to happen to regions east of the Rockies. The Great Plains offer an unobstructed channel from the tropics.

Can this storm be attributed to climate warming.

As David Suzuki points out, it is difficult to associate a single event with the process of climate warming. However, this storm should be a wake up call.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/david-suzu ... 5.html?amp


Climate models predict that the jet stream will flow with less vigour as temperatures between the north and the tropics narrow. Therefore, extreme events will occur with greater regularity and strength.

Is Calgary sustainable if they get hit like this every ten years (or five years). The last big flood was in 2005, and it was a weenier compared to 2013.

Vancouver's problem is that we are likely to get more precipitation in a unpredictable manner.

“As the report points out, "Natural climate variability has always resulted in such extremes, but the physical characteristics of extreme weather and climate events are being increasingly shaped by climate change."

In many ways, climate change is about water change. For every one degree increase in temperature, the atmosphere's ability to hold water increases seven per cent. Massive amounts of water from melting ice sheets are being liberated while evaporation increases from oceans that cover 70 per cent of Earth's surface. Meanwhile greater turbulence and instability of the atmosphere and jet stream dump heavier loads of water and increase the frequency of extreme events like tornadoes and hurricanes.”

Did you think that we could use so much energy without serious consequences?

The long term problem is the rise in the sea level. The last time, the earth saw such high concentrations of CO2, it was several million years ago and the sea was 10 to 20 meters higher.

In the near future, expect more excitement from weather 'events'. It could be coming to your location soon!

Break out the popcorn.

Taipans Tsunami is attacking Richmond from the East.....Whocuddanode?

The answer is..It could happen anywhere. (except Sun Peaks where Dr Evil has his hideout)
Thats life though...You pays yer money and you takesk yer chances




aaah ka ka ka ka a

I think in terms of Richmond, real estate prices for homes and town homes there will drop significantly due to the low lying area and if they ever have an earthquake then richmond will be pretty much under water. Definitely a downward trend in homes in Richmond for sure. Pretty much a downward trend everywhere these past few weeks, lots of listings not moving.

In Coquitlam, many folks who bought near the river are probably looking to get to higher ground soon realizing it's just a matter of time.

Sorry. Can't scare people that way. They're too dense. They're only believe when they get hit.

Just watched a CBC special on Alberta. The folks in Calgary's Inglewood neighbourhood are watching the river carefully. It just ate the waterfront park. So, their homes are now waterfront property. Remains to be seen how waterfront it becomes!

BTW, aren't you glad that you didn't move to Calgary?

Taipans Tsunami is attacking Richmond from the East.....Whocuddanode?

The answer is..It could happen anywhere. (except Sun Peaks where Dr Evil has his hideout)
Thats life though...You pays yer money and you takesk yer chances

Let's just assume that it's not a random event. How much would you pay to avoid the problem. How much to avoid the disaster happening twice to you?

Taipans Tsunami is attacking Richmond from the East.....Whocuddanode?

The answer is..It could happen anywhere. (except Sun Peaks where Dr Evil has his hideout)
Thats life though...You pays yer money and you takesk yer chances

1314810017_popeye-money.jpg

aaah ka ka ka ka a

This.

Its happened before, it will happen again.

People colonized near rivers, and oceans for the ease of transportation. That comes with certain risks, that are now becoming more apparent as water levels rise for the thousandth time.

Nothing that is happening is extraordinary, its only notable because we are measuring it on such a short time frame; our occupation of North America.

I think in terms of Richmond, real estate prices for homes and town homes there will drop significantly due to the low lying area and if they ever have an earthquake then richmond will be pretty much under water. Definitely a downward trend in homes in Richmond for sure. Pretty much a downward trend everywhere these past few weeks, lots of listings not moving.

In Coquitlam, many folks who bought near the river are probably looking to get to higher ground soon realizing it's just a matter of time.

People moving out of Richmond into higher grounds like Vancouver. What does that do the price of Vancouver? Unless they decide to move outside the lower mainland.

Properties on higher elevation will go up while areas in Richmond will drop

This.

Its happened before, it will happen again.

People colonized near rivers, and oceans for the ease of transportation. That comes with certain risks, that are now becoming more apparent as water levels rise for the thousandth time.

Nothing that is happening is extraordinary, its only notable because we are measuring it on such a short time frame; our occupation of North America.

Yes, mankind has been building communities by the water for millennium.

Archaeology also tells us of countless lost cities and civilizations. Why were the cities abandoned? After all, cities represent a tremendous investment in infrastructure and culture.

It is important to identify conditions that have changed fundamentally. For example, are there new trends. Is something happening of an unprecedented nature. Is it happening in a series?

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/trend.asp


More important, is there a systemic explanation where many parts fit into a coherent whole.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_climate_model


In the face of predictions (from climate models) that are happening with precision, it would be truly stupid to hide your head in the sand.

BTW, there are lots of flood damaged houses in Calgary. Some in premium districts. Should be going cheap. Good luck!

I remember when Squamish flooded back in the late 50's. That was pretty bad.

Incredible floods around the world. My friend, born and raised in Van, was in Germany recently for their brutal flooding. He said he's never seen rain like that in his life. Remember pics of NY subway underwater? Now the Saddledome??

Scary s--t.

The townhomes in the Port Coquitlam area near the river are attractive but now on second thoughts..

The first rule of where to buy or build a house is to check out the flood plain, and flood risk. If you build near a river (Calgary has more than one main river flowing through it's center), that's the risk you take, more or less. If the land is relatively flat, that risk can extend out quite a ways. We even had some flooding in the okanagan, a semi desert area. Where there are major "creeks" or low areas (which also happen to be some of the best farm land) there is often flooding and will continue to be on wetter years. On the street I live on, people on my side of the street have little or no problem with the large amount of rain we had lately in a short time. People on the other side of the street have to have special drainage precautions around their homes if they don't want flooded basements, and we aren't even near a creek, but a ravene which will direct the water if there's enough rain. I have seen homes around here located deep in a ravene or canyon, right next to a creek that you know is going to flood every so often. As far as Calgary goes, here's one article on the topic (lessons to be learned for the lower mainland):
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/201 ... eport.html

Here's the follow up for Calgary. Sunnyside got flooded again.


Calgary hit with flash floods from heavy rain

'We expect this will drain quickly when rain stops,' Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi says

Emergency crews responded to flooding around the city, including in Sunnyside, where many homes were evacuated when the Bow River spilled its banks June 20.

Others areas affected include Victoria Park, Mission and other parts of Calgary's Beltline.

Traffic in many areas of the city had also come to a crawl because of huge puddles of water pooling on busy Calgary roads and underpasses.

Parts of Memorial Drive and Blackfoot Trail had been closed, but have since reopened.

While not as bad as the recent flooding that hit the city, the water is still causing headaches for many Calgarians. There are reports of water seeping into some basements in Sunnyside, but firefighters are on scene helping residents pump water and clear debris from storm sewers. "


http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/s ... ain-w.html