Risk Tolerance Policy
Overview
What are we doing?
The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is developing a new Risk Tolerance Policy to strengthen risk-informed land use planning decisions and enhance community resilience to natural hazards. Similar policies are increasingly common within municipalities and jurisdictions across British Columbia. The project is expected to be complete by June 2026.
What is the purpose?
Currently, land use planning and permitting in the RDCK require a geotechnical engineering report prepared by a Qualified Professional (QP) to certify that the land is “safe for the use intended,” in accordance with Section 56 of the Community Charter. The project will establish clear risk tolerance criteria and policy to support a consistent, risk-informed approach to evaluating development applications in areas prone to hazards such as floods, landslides, and steep creek hazards (debris flows and debris floods).
Why is this important?
The policy will apply to all electoral areas, providing a consistent basis for evaluating development applications and determining whether proposed developments – including land use, buildings, infrastructure, and service provision – meet safety expectations. Policies addressing flood, erosion and steep creek hazards are essential tools for improving disaster resilience through informed development decisions.
Some of the most frequent and damaging natural hazards that the region faces are flood and steep creek hazards (such as debris flows and debris floods). In the last 15 years alone, we have witnessed significant flood events in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2023, along with the fatal landslide at Johnson’s Landing and flooding along Kootenay Lake’s shoreline in 2012. These events have led to a tragic loss of life, damage to property, and evacuation alerts, orders, and emergency response efforts, highlighting the need to better understand flood and steep creek hazard risks in our communities and the ways that we can lessen those risks.
To increase our understanding of the risks related to flooding and steep creeks in the region, in 2019 the RDCK conducted a “Regional Geohazard Risk Prioritization Study” under the National Disaster Mitigation Program (NDMP).
How do I stay informed?
Another public webinar is anticipated for Spring 2026 but in the meantime you can watch the first public webinar by clicking on the link in the sidebar above. When a date has been set for the second webinar it will be posted to this page.
Visit this page regularly for updates, and feel free to contact us directly with any questions or feedback.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a geohazard risk tolerance policy? What is a geohazard?
The RDCK is currently undertaking a project, made possible through Provincial funding, to develop a formal geohazard risk tolerance policy for the region. This risk tolerance policy would apply to all Electoral Areas (A-K) and will help guide risk informed planning decisions and strengthen community resilience to natural hazards. Geohazards are naturally occurring hazards in the environment, including landslides, floods, and fastmoving surges of water mixed with mud, boulders, and other debris that travel down steep mountain creeks.
A geohazard risk tolerance policy is a tool that outlines the level of life-safety risk from geohazards that a community is willing to accept or tolerate. For example, a community might decide that the level of risk from geohazards should be no greater than other everyday risks that people commonly accept, such as the risk of fatality from driving. A risk tolerance policy sets clear and measurable criteria for determining when land development is considered “safe for the use intended,” helping ensure consistent land-use planning and development decisions.
Why does the RDCK need a geohazard risk tolerance policy?
Currently, the RDCK does not have a formal geohazard risk tolerance policy – meaning there is no defined threshold for what level of geohazard risk is considered acceptable. A risk tolerance policy is needed to clearly establish what level of risk the community is willing to accept or tolerate when making land use decisions. Having this defined threshold will provide a consistent and transparent basis for determining when land is considered “safe for the use intended.”
How is the level of acceptable geohazard risk currently determined?
Under the current RDCK development approvals process, acceptable risk is determined on a case-by-case basis. A Qualified Professional (QP), such as an engineer or geoscientist, carries out a site‑specific assessment and provides a qualified opinion on whether the proposed development is “safe for the use intended,” following professional practice guidelines and relevant legislation. However, this determination is not based on any RDCK-specific risk tolerance criteria, because none currently exists.
RDCK’s staff then review the application and the QP’s report to assess the proposal and make the final decision on whether the application should proceed.
What benefits does a geohazard risk tolerance policy provide?
Establishing a risk tolerance policy will provide clear, transparent, and measurable criteria for determining when land is considered “safe for the use intended.” This will ultimately help reduce long-term exposure to geohazards and support a safer, more climate-resilient community.
Establishing a formal risk tolerance policy will:
- Define a clear, transparent, and measurable threshold which supports Qualified Professionals (QPs) in determining if a development is “safe for the use intended.”
- Increase consistency in land-use decision making by creating a common framework for evaluating development applications in hazard-prone areas across the region.
- Clarify how current and future risk – particularly under climate-change influenced conditions – compares to the established risk-tolerance criteria, helping the community plan for long-term resilience and reduce exposure to intolerable levels of geohazard risks.
Will a new policy impact property development, or property values?
A formal geohazard risk tolerance policy will not change the existing development approval process in the region. Instead, it will strengthen the existing framework by introducing clear, transparent, and measurable criteria to support consistent evaluation of whether a development is considered “safe for the use intended.”
This policy does not directly influence assessed property values or insurance rates. However, it will help make the life-safety risks associated with geohazards more explicit for applicants, decision-makers and property owners.
Have other jurisdictions done this type of work before? Can we learn from their experience?
Yes. Policies that clarify risk tolerance are becoming increasingly common. Several jurisdictions in British Columbia, including the District of North Vancouver, the District of Squamish, and the Cowichan Valley Regional District, have adopted risk-based approaches and formal tolerance criteria, and now have practical experience in their implementation. Their approaches and lessons learned are being considered as part of the RDCK’s development of its own geohazard risk tolerance policy.
How can I learn more?
You can get more information on these policy changes in the following ways:
- Attend the webinar (LINK HERE) – scheduled for February 10, 2026 (see Engage RDCK page for details).
- Email the RDCK staff contact for this work:
- Nora Hannon, Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Senior Advisor
- RDCK Risk Tolerance Policy Lead
- Email: NHannon@rdck.ca
- Telephone: 250-352-8177
What are we doing?
The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) is developing a new Risk Tolerance Policy to strengthen risk-informed land use planning decisions and enhance community resilience to natural hazards. Similar policies are increasingly common within municipalities and jurisdictions across British Columbia. The project is expected to be complete by June 2026.
What is the purpose?
Currently, land use planning and permitting in the RDCK require a geotechnical engineering report prepared by a Qualified Professional (QP) to certify that the land is “safe for the use intended,” in accordance with Section 56 of the Community Charter. The project will establish clear risk tolerance criteria and policy to support a consistent, risk-informed approach to evaluating development applications in areas prone to hazards such as floods, landslides, and steep creek hazards (debris flows and debris floods).
Why is this important?
The policy will apply to all electoral areas, providing a consistent basis for evaluating development applications and determining whether proposed developments – including land use, buildings, infrastructure, and service provision – meet safety expectations. Policies addressing flood, erosion and steep creek hazards are essential tools for improving disaster resilience through informed development decisions.
Some of the most frequent and damaging natural hazards that the region faces are flood and steep creek hazards (such as debris flows and debris floods). In the last 15 years alone, we have witnessed significant flood events in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2023, along with the fatal landslide at Johnson’s Landing and flooding along Kootenay Lake’s shoreline in 2012. These events have led to a tragic loss of life, damage to property, and evacuation alerts, orders, and emergency response efforts, highlighting the need to better understand flood and steep creek hazard risks in our communities and the ways that we can lessen those risks.
To increase our understanding of the risks related to flooding and steep creeks in the region, in 2019 the RDCK conducted a “Regional Geohazard Risk Prioritization Study” under the National Disaster Mitigation Program (NDMP).
How do I stay informed?
Another public webinar is anticipated for Spring 2026 but in the meantime you can watch the first public webinar by clicking on the link in the sidebar above. When a date has been set for the second webinar it will be posted to this page.
Visit this page regularly for updates, and feel free to contact us directly with any questions or feedback.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a geohazard risk tolerance policy? What is a geohazard?
The RDCK is currently undertaking a project, made possible through Provincial funding, to develop a formal geohazard risk tolerance policy for the region. This risk tolerance policy would apply to all Electoral Areas (A-K) and will help guide risk informed planning decisions and strengthen community resilience to natural hazards. Geohazards are naturally occurring hazards in the environment, including landslides, floods, and fastmoving surges of water mixed with mud, boulders, and other debris that travel down steep mountain creeks.
A geohazard risk tolerance policy is a tool that outlines the level of life-safety risk from geohazards that a community is willing to accept or tolerate. For example, a community might decide that the level of risk from geohazards should be no greater than other everyday risks that people commonly accept, such as the risk of fatality from driving. A risk tolerance policy sets clear and measurable criteria for determining when land development is considered “safe for the use intended,” helping ensure consistent land-use planning and development decisions.
Why does the RDCK need a geohazard risk tolerance policy?
Currently, the RDCK does not have a formal geohazard risk tolerance policy – meaning there is no defined threshold for what level of geohazard risk is considered acceptable. A risk tolerance policy is needed to clearly establish what level of risk the community is willing to accept or tolerate when making land use decisions. Having this defined threshold will provide a consistent and transparent basis for determining when land is considered “safe for the use intended.”
How is the level of acceptable geohazard risk currently determined?
Under the current RDCK development approvals process, acceptable risk is determined on a case-by-case basis. A Qualified Professional (QP), such as an engineer or geoscientist, carries out a site‑specific assessment and provides a qualified opinion on whether the proposed development is “safe for the use intended,” following professional practice guidelines and relevant legislation. However, this determination is not based on any RDCK-specific risk tolerance criteria, because none currently exists.
RDCK’s staff then review the application and the QP’s report to assess the proposal and make the final decision on whether the application should proceed.
What benefits does a geohazard risk tolerance policy provide?
Establishing a risk tolerance policy will provide clear, transparent, and measurable criteria for determining when land is considered “safe for the use intended.” This will ultimately help reduce long-term exposure to geohazards and support a safer, more climate-resilient community.
Establishing a formal risk tolerance policy will:
- Define a clear, transparent, and measurable threshold which supports Qualified Professionals (QPs) in determining if a development is “safe for the use intended.”
- Increase consistency in land-use decision making by creating a common framework for evaluating development applications in hazard-prone areas across the region.
- Clarify how current and future risk – particularly under climate-change influenced conditions – compares to the established risk-tolerance criteria, helping the community plan for long-term resilience and reduce exposure to intolerable levels of geohazard risks.
Will a new policy impact property development, or property values?
A formal geohazard risk tolerance policy will not change the existing development approval process in the region. Instead, it will strengthen the existing framework by introducing clear, transparent, and measurable criteria to support consistent evaluation of whether a development is considered “safe for the use intended.”
This policy does not directly influence assessed property values or insurance rates. However, it will help make the life-safety risks associated with geohazards more explicit for applicants, decision-makers and property owners.
Have other jurisdictions done this type of work before? Can we learn from their experience?
Yes. Policies that clarify risk tolerance are becoming increasingly common. Several jurisdictions in British Columbia, including the District of North Vancouver, the District of Squamish, and the Cowichan Valley Regional District, have adopted risk-based approaches and formal tolerance criteria, and now have practical experience in their implementation. Their approaches and lessons learned are being considered as part of the RDCK’s development of its own geohazard risk tolerance policy.
How can I learn more?
You can get more information on these policy changes in the following ways:
- Attend the webinar (LINK HERE) – scheduled for February 10, 2026 (see Engage RDCK page for details).
- Email the RDCK staff contact for this work:
- Nora Hannon, Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Senior Advisor
- RDCK Risk Tolerance Policy Lead
- Email: NHannon@rdck.ca
- Telephone: 250-352-8177
Who's listening
Key Dates
Exact date to be determined. Check back here in the spring for an exact date and link.
