Decision Date: June 8, 2004

Panel: Cindy Derkaz, Paul Love, David Thomas

Keywords:  Water Act – ss. 5, 7, 11, 15; sufficient water flow

V.C. Richard Baravelle (the “Appellant”) appealed the issuance of a conditional water licence by the Regional Water Manager (the “Regional Manager”), authorizing the diversion of 500 gallons per day for domestic purposes from Alymer Creek near Nelson, BC.  The Appellant’s main grounds for appeal were that there was insufficient flow in the creek to support a new licence and that the Regional Manager should have considered an alternate source of water from another nearby creek.  The Appellant also argued that the Regional Manager’s decision was based on outdated and insufficient flow information.  The Appellant requested that the Board rescind the licence.  At the request of the Appellant, the appeal was adjourned from October 2002 to March 2004 so that the parties could negotiate a settlement to the issue; it was reconvened when those efforts failed.

The Board found that, even though some of the most complete flow records for the creek were between 80 and 50 years old, they were adequate, in combination with a number of spot flow measurements taken in the past decade, to support the Regional Manager’s decision to issue the licence.  The Board found that the Appellant failed to prove that there is insufficient flow in the creek to support the issuance of the licence.

The Board noted that the Third Party had asked for a licence to use water from a nearby creek in the event that their application for a licence from Alymer Creek was denied.  The Board found that, given his assessment that there are adequate flows to support a licence on Alymer Creek, the Regional Manager had no obligation to consider an alternate source of water for the licence.

The Appeal was dismissed.