ERCA says damage to Little River dike by homeowners could cause major flooding
Resident says homeowners willing to work with city but want to see more data
A handful of homeowners along the Little River channel in Riverside are putting thousands of homes at risk of flooding with their personal backyard landscaping choices, according to the Essex Region Conservation Authority.
"The tampering though is grave concern," said Tim Byrne, director of watershed management with ERCA.
"A minority of properties have done significant works that have damaged these dikes to a point that they will be breached with only nominal levels of flood pressure against them."
Eight people with the city and ERCA kept a close eye on the channel during the heavy rainfall at the end of August to make sure the dike didn't overflow, according to Byrne.
Each backyard along the Little River channel has a mound of dirt, known as a berm, separating the yard from the water. That mound of dirt acts as a final barrier if water rises past the metal sheeting on the side of the channel.
Byrne said about a dozen residents have caused major damage to the berm by hauling out dirt and placing patios, concrete or structures in that portion of the yard.
That damage would create a weak point on the dike system in the event of a flood, according to Byrne, when water would flow between the structure and the dirt, slowly ripping it away.
He said if the dike was breached water would flood homes for kilometres on both sides of the channel - with water levels reaching one-and-a-half metres deep on the west side of the river.
"You would see water levels up to the eavestrough on some of these homes back in behind these dikes," said Byrne.
Removal of structures
He said it's at the point now where future development in Riverside could be halted until the dikes are restored.
"At a very quick point in time the conservation authority and city will have to consider shutting down any development out in those flood prone areas," said Byrne.
A staff report sent to council recommends the city tell property owners to remove any obstructions from the top of the berm to the water's edge within 60 days.
The report said that this work would be completed at the property owner's expense or done by city staff and charged to the homeowner through property taxes.
That same report includes $200,000 "for costs related to the public education program, the topographical survey, emergency repairs and obstruction removal" from the Little River dike.
Byrne's main concern is the people who have removed sections of the berm.
"This work right now - given the storm conditions and the issues we are seeing relative to climate change - this is critical, right now, to have this work completed," said Byrne.
Residential reaction
Tammy Kapsalis moved into a home on the Little River dike two years ago and had no idea that the property from her home to the berm to the water was not something she could build on.
Kapsalis has a patio on the side of the berm closest to her home and a dock on the water.
"The city and ERCA want us to remove everything from the steel wall to the top of the berm," said Kapsalis.
She attended the public meeting hosted this summer for people living on the Little River dike system.
Here's the view at the end of Little River Road as rain continues to fall - but sky starting to clear. <a href="https://t.co/lKbj1xXfdh">pic.twitter.com/lKbj1xXfdh</a>
—@ChrisEnsingCBCKapsalis said at the meeting the main topic of discussion from ERCA was the damming of the Little River system if flood waters pushed floating docks and boat lifts to the bridge at Riverside Drive.
"We don't feel that that's a concern, honestly. It would take a lot of water for that to happen," said Kapsalis.
She said that residents believe the bridge should be changed and that they aren't certain the water would reach levels that would reach the berm.
"There's people that have lived here through 30, 40 years so they've seen the elevation changes," said Kapsalis. "The highest it's ever come is in 1987 and it came probably within 3 inches to the top of the steel wall and that's at (the Riverside Drive) end."
More data wanted
Kapsalis said that residents she's spoken to said they want to work with the city to make sure that the area is protected but they want more concrete data from ERCA.
"We're willing to work with ERCA and the city to do as many things as we can to keep what we have and to make it functional so that those issues that don't happen," said Kapsalis.
"I think the ones that are cut all the way through, certainly, they need to be looked at and seen where they are," said Kapsalis.
"Honestly, again we haven't seen anything to demonstrate to us how that would happen. We haven't seen any kind of video showing the flow of water and how it would happen."
ERCA has a a 1-in-100 year flood map available online that shows what a substantial flood could do to the area.
It's not clear if the images shown include a working or breached dike.
Kapsalis believes that the focus placed on the Little River dike system by ERCA should be shifted towards the area on Riverside Drive that runs along the Detroit River.
"If water is going to come into the city because of the high lake levels that they told us it's going to come in from Riverside Drive," said Kapsalis.
"It's not going to come in from Little River unless there's information that they're not providing to us and the public."