Two government initiatives dealing with the past summer’s flooding are causing some concerns amongst the public and opposition politicians.

In particular, a questionnaire being prepared by the Yukon Housing Corp. for residents affected by the flooding has earned some swift rebukes for its language from representatives of the Yukon Party and NDP Leader Kate White.

“The Yukon government is considering the development of a flood remediation and recovery program to assist affected Yukoners restore their properties and mitigate against future flooding events,” reads an email obtained by the Star.

“As such, Yukon Housing Corporation has developed a questionnaire to commence engagement with property owners who have been impacted by the flooding.

“Your feedback will also assist us in determining the scope of property assessments to conduct and ultimately determine the appropriate funding support that may be required.”

The email was sent by Marcel Holder Robinson of the housing corporation.

A second email from the Emergency Measures Organization (EMO) is also somewhat ambiguous about a government support program.

That’s something most people affected by the flooding thought was a confirmed promise – not something to be merely further negotiated.

A flood victim contacted the Star this week to make that exact point.

“Moving forward, the Emergency Measures Organization is developing a remediation and recovery program that will advise homeowners on restoring their properties and mitigating against future flooding events,” said the EMO’s email.

“We are working closely with our colleagues in the Yukon Housing Corporation to design a relief programme that will be similar to those established for flooding in 2007.

“We will have opportunities for consultation and discussion with the community. We are planning a public meeting in the next week to discuss with you the plans moving forward,” wrote EMO director Kevin Lyslo. 

White said she somewhat shared the concerns about the wording the government is using in the two emails.

“There are issues with the language,” she said Tuesday afternoon.

“This all leads to a bigger question. What did the government learn from the flooding in 2007, and are they using what they learned?”

White said she hoped this is a case of the language being chosen, not an indication the government is backing away from what it had previously announced.

Yukon Party MLA Brad Cathers shares those concerns.

Cathers told the Star Monday afternoon he sincerely hopes the language in the emails is evidence of government staff simply being careless with what they wrote – rather than being indicative of a bigger problem.

“Looking at the questionnaire, I’ve had residents who are concerned about that language,” Cathers said. “I’ve sent an email to minister Ranj Pillai over it.”

Pillai is the minister responsible for the housing corporation.

“My concern is that the government seems be back-tracking,” Cathers said. “But I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt.”

In his email, Lyslo wrote: “This summer, the Government of Yukon mounted the largest flood relief effort in Yukon’s history to deal with unprecedented water levels.

“The peak water levels were reached on July 11, when Bennett, Tagish and Marsh Lake all measured more than 20 centimetres above the historic flood levels of 2007.

“Lake Laberge reached more than 40 centimetres above the peak in 2007. More than 550,000 sandbags and 2,000 super bags were deployed to protect residents and their properties,” Lyslo wrote. 

“Based on the available forecasts and water level models, we believe that we have witnessed the peak water levels for the Southern Lakes this season.

“Flood risk for properties and infrastructure will continue until water levels fall below normal seasonal high water marks; which is currently projected to happen in late September.” 

Lyslo went on to say: “We thank you for your patience and resilience during the challenges we faced this summer, and I look forward to discussing our recovery plan as it is further developed.”

The housing corporation’s Robinson advised the Star:

“Work is now underway to develop a remediation and recovery program that will assist Yukoners in restoring their properties and mitigating against future flooding events.

“As part of this recovery program, we need to understand the number of properties affected by flooding, and the type and severity of impact during the 2021 flood event.

“The Yukon Housing Corporation has developed a questionnaire to engage with property owners impacted by the flooding. The questionnaire is not an application for funding, but rather the responses will help us in determining the number and scope of on-site property assessments that need to be conducted.

“This information will help frame the appropriate funding program options and extent of support that may be required.

“We understand that some residents have had questions about the email with the flood damage questionnaire and we are continuing to work with these residents to provide clarification.”

Water levels still dropping.