Auditor general inquiry into flood mitigation ‘incomplete’ as Alberta ministry denies request
CBC
Alberta’s auditor general says he was denied information he requested from the Department of Municipal Affairs while attempting to assess flood mitigation systems.
“Municipal Affairs asserts they completed analysis of controlling development in floodways, which was provided to the minister and cabinet,” Doug Wylie wrote in a report released Thursday.
“My office sought evidence of the analysis as part of our assessment of implementation, from both Environment and Municipal Affairs.”
The auditor general’s office asked Municipal Affairs to provide its analyses. But the ministry told him that its “analysis was privileged, and they could not provide it,” Wylie said.
“Our report remains incomplete without this information, which we believe is important to the public,” Wylie wrote.
“Examining analysis, prepared by a department, as it relates to risks and risk management is a routine part of our work. As a result, our findings may not reflect pertinent and significant information, and our work is incomplete in this regard.”
In a statement, a spokesperson in Alberta’s municipal affairs ministry wrote that it values the mandate and statutory powers of the auditor general's office and carefully considered its requests for information.
"Municipal Affairs worked collaboratively with the Office of the Auditor General throughout its review, and the ministry shared non-privileged information openly and transparently with the Office of the Auditor General throughout this process," reads a statement from Michael Francoeur, assistant communications director with the ministry.
Still, Wylie said being denied access is unusual.
“I think we’ve had Dynalife, that I recall, and now this, where we’ve been refused access to what has been deemed privileged information. I’ve been with the organization a long time … so, I would say this is an uncommon practice,” Wylie said.
The report into flood mitigation systems was one of eight released by the auditor general’s office on Thursday morning.
In 2015, the auditor general’s office made four recommendations as part of an audit into flood mitigation systems, in the wake of the province’s 2013 floods that displaced more than 100,000 people and cost more than $5 billion.
That audit found weaknesses in flood hazard mapping and inconsistent approaches to managing development in flood hazard areas. It also determined that Alberta Municipal Affairs had not finalized regulations or enforcement processes for land use in floodways.
In his most recent report, Wylie wrote that three of the office’s recommendations from the 2015 audit had been implemented.
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