Drought conditions persist across southern B.C. despite recent rainfall

VICTORIA – British Columbia’s southern Interior is facing “entrenched” drought conditions despite recent rainfall. 

The River Forecast Centre says in its latest water scarcity bulletin that many groundwater monitoring wells in the region “continue to record exceptionally low water levels.”

The situation is the same in many of the region’s lakes and waterways, with Kalamalka and Okanagan lakes “at record-low levels,” creating concern about habitat reduction for salmon.

The centre says flows in the Similkameen and Tulameen rivers and Hedley Creek are also well below normal “with little response to rainfall,” sparking concerns for drinking water availability in Thompson-Okanagan communities.

There are existing orders limiting water use for the Salmon River and Bessette Creek watersheds, while voluntary irrigation shut-off measures have been in place since August for the Lower Nicola, Upper Nicola and Coldwater river watersheds. 

The provincial drought portal shows high water scarcity levels across many southern Interior regions, including the Okanagan, Nicola and Coldwater rivers areas and Similkameen.

“September has so far been drier than normal across much of B.C., although some areas in the southeast have received closer to average rainfall amounts,” the bulletin says.

“Despite recent precipitation in the Okanagan watershed, streamflow remains critically low for aquatic ecosystem needs in nearly all tributaries, and mainstem lake levels remain at record lows.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2026.