The breach in the natural berm

In the winter of 2007/8 a storm pushed a multitude of logs through the natural berm at the north end of the man made sea wall.  The man made sea wall stops where it does because when the sea wall was last worked on in 1987 both the CRD and residents felt the existing natural berm that ran up to the Tsawout lands was adequate (source:  V. Michell).   It may have been adequate in normal circumstances but the logs let loose by human activity were an unnatural event and caused the breach of the natural berm.

Central Saanich Council  passed a resolution on June 19, 2012 calling on the CRD to "inspect, repair and maintain all berms and infrastructure which protect the Park from the Ocean, extending from the Tsawout land south to the Central Saanich border, and specifically inspect and repair the berm at its most northerly point where a log jam occurred in the past."   See here

This Council resolution was supported by a 500 signature public petition.  See here

A core goal of the Cordova Strategy that was managed by CRD Parks staff was to remove the sea wall to allow flooding of Island View Beach.

When CRD Park staff made their recommendations to the Committee on March 20, 2013, they only gave the Committee two solutions.  One for a proposal to build a $15 million great wall around the park, and the other being not to fix the breach.   Staff did not provide the Committee with a cost to repair the breach as requested by Central Saanich Council and the public petition.  see here