Slight improvement to Southern Interior drought conditions, Okanagan unchanged

The cooler, wetter weather has improved drought conditions at one basin in the Southern Interior.

As of Thursday, Nov. 16, the B.C. River Forecast Centre reported the Similkameen Basin was ranked at Drought Level 2, down from Level 3 the week prior.

The Similkameen Basin joined the Okanagan, South Thompson, North Thompson, Lower Thompson and Cold River basins at Level 2, all of which were unchanged on a weekly basis.

Under Level 2, conditions are “not likely to create adverse impacts to the socio-economic or ecosystem values.”

There were no other changes to conditions in Southern Interior basins on a weekly basis.

As of Nov. 16, the Upper Columbia was ranked at Level 1; the Salmon River, Nicola, Lower Columbia and West Kootenay basins were at Level 3; and the Kettle and East Kootenay Basins were still ranked Level 4.

For more on how B.C.s drought level classification works, click here.