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“The Town does take a lot of pride in the work we do to protect our watersheds. We cannot do it without the work of the volunteer community members who do a lot of hard work behind the scenes. The Town wants to continue making the Brookyn Creek area and Northeast Comox better as climate challenges become more direct upon us. We want to ensure there is a balance maintained between development and stream protection,” stated Mayor Russ Arnott.

“The change in approach starts with land use planning and determining what infrastructure and services can be provided sustainably, both fiscally and ecologically. Another key message is that all those involved in land development have a role to play in achieving Sustainable Service Delivery,” states Judy Walker.

“Inter-regional sharing, collaboration, alignment and consistency will accelerate effective implementation of watershed protection objectives within each regional district. The regions are linked by common interests, but are not dependent on each other,” stated Comox Valley Board Chair Edwin Grieve.

“By examining all actions in the context of the watershed, we can move toward a governance system that is rooted in ecological principles, and shift the focus towards managing the people within a watershed, rather than controlling the watershed itself,” stated Oliver Brandes. “We agreed to collaborate to collaborate with the Partnership to promote development and province-wide implementation of a fully integrated Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia; and thereby achieve a more holistic approach to water management in BC.”

“Asset Management BC supports the development of a local government asset management strategy for the province. To this end, Partnerships serve us all well. Asset Management is about integration of disciplines and co-operation among all parties. We all benefit from sharing of knowledge and information,” stated Wally Wells. The AMBC Newsletter has repeatedly featured the Partnership for Water Sustainability, and this coverage is helping to build the profile of the Partnership with the asset management audience. The messaging vis-à-vis the “unfunded infrastructure liability” is in alignment and mutually reinforcing.

Mayor Larry Jangula congratulated staff, in particular Derek Richmond for his work as Chair of CAVI, and also Kevin Lagan. “You have both produced excellent work on water sustainability within the City and for the province in general,” stated the Mayor.

“The current process has the Community Partnership working together with the CAVI-Convening for Action on Vancouver Island intitiative, Regional and Municipal planners, engineers and politicians to develop a new way of doing business,” says Jack Minard.

“The IIABC is collaborating to build a foundation for future change in order to help us align our industry education and certification offerings that include efficient irrigation systems. We all need to be accountable for our water resource. With shared tools and programs; we can collaborate to make a difference,” states Keesha Rosario.

“The learning captured in the ‘Primer on Integrated Rainwater and Groundwater Management for Lands on Vancouver Island and Beyond’ is being shared with other local governments on Vancouver Island. Knowledge-sharing is being facilitated through the Inter-Regional Education Initiative,” states Craig Wightman.

“The essence of the VIEA-CAVI partnership is contained in the phrase ‘economy and ecology in balance’. VIEA promotes regional initiatives that strengthen economic capacity; and CAVI represents the ecological perspective through its championing of green infrastructure and water sustainability,” states George Hanson.