DOWNLOAD: Moving from Stormwater Management to RAINwater Management: A Federal Fisheries Perspective
Note to Reader:
In October 1997, a focus group workshop convened by the Union of British Columbia Municipalities set in motion a chain of outcomes that culminated in Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia, released in June 2002. This was a catalyst for change that has resulted in British Columbia achieving international recognition as a leader in implementing green infrastructure.
Five years later, the evolution in thinking was captured in Beyond the Guidebook: Context for Rainwater Management and Green Infrastructure in British Columbia. Released in June 2007, this succinct guidance document foreshadowed Living Water Smart, BC’s Water Plan and the Green Communities Initiative, both of which were launched in 2008.
The formal rollout of Beyond the Guidebook commenced in November 2007 at a seminar organized in collaboration with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC (APEGBC). Branded as Rainwater Management & Green Infrastructure: Resources and Successes for Protecting Stream Health, the seminar provided a platform to present federal and provincial perspectives on applying a science-based approach to “doing business differently”.
A Federal Fisheries Perspective
At the Beyond the Guidebook Seminar, Corino Salomi (Head, Habitat Section, Lower Fraser Valley), a member of the steering committees for both the Green Infrastructure and Water Balance Model partnerships, delivered a presentation titled Moving from Stormwater Management to RAINwater Management: A DFO Perspective. His presentation was structured in three parts:
- an overview of fish habitat management policy and legislation;
- the history of guidelines in British Columbia; and
- a federal perspective on Beyond the Guidebook.
“We are moving from guidelines to tools”, Corino noted when introducing the road-map for his presentation.
RAINwater Management
Corino Salomi described the Beyond the Guidebook as a ‘must read’ because of the way it provides a synopsis of what is most relevant and useful. “We now have the tools and the experience to design with nature and move from stormwater management to RAINwater management”, he stated in his closing remarks.
He summarized by emphasizing that the objective is protect stream health, which is broader than how much volume one can infiltrate on a particular development. “While we need to have volume reduction targets, at the end of the day it is how effectively we apply the suite of available rainwater management tools that will ultimately determine whether we will succeed in protecting stream health at a watershed scale,” concluded Corino.
To Learn More:
To download and read the complete story about the presentation by Corino Salomi, click on Moving from Stormwater Management to RAINwater Management: A Federal Fisheries Perspective.
To download a copy of the PowerPoint presentation by Corino Salomi, click here.
