PCDS Portal
The Provincial Climate Data Set (PCDS) Portal contains observations of weather and climate variables (such as temperature and rainfall amounts) for British Columbia. Locations of observation stations are shown on an interactive map of the province which enables a user to zoom and pan to a region of interest, learn about the stations that are there, filter the displayed stations based on observation date, weather element, observing agency, region and more.
Users can download the meta-data which describe station location, available variables, parent agency and other basic information. Users may also log-in to the portal using an OpenID account and download the observational data themselves. The data in the portal are part of a dynamic database. Near real-time ingestion of hourly data from Environment Canada is under way with near real-time data from other agencies available soon. The portal also contains climatological averages from stations where sufficient data were available for their calculation. PCIC is actively working on quality control and homogenization efforts and will update the data when these processes are complete. Users of the portal will be notified when such updates are made.
The data contained in the Provincial Climate Data Set (PCDS) were collected by British Columbia ministries as well as private and federal partners as part of the Climate Related Monitoring Program. The BC ministries, RioTinto Alcan, BC Hydro, and PCIC were brought together under an agreement allowing PCIC to hold, maintain and distribute climate data for British Columbia. Environment Canada supports these efforts and has permitted PCIC to collect and diseminate its data. The Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions has provided fiscal support for this project. This cooperation has allowed the formation of a comprehensive data set of weather and climate observation for British Columbia unlike any other in Canada. Please visit the links below to learn more about the project partners.
