2007 Beyond the Guidebook Seminar organized under the umbrella of the Water Sustainability Action Plan
Beyond the Guidebook
Held in November 2007, the Beyond the Guidebook Seminar was an early step in the rollout of Beyond the Guidebook: Context for Rainwater Management and Green Infrastructure in British Columbia. This guidance document was released in June 2007.
Beyond the Guidebook is an inter-governmental initiative that is advancing a runoff-based approach and tool – the ‘Water Balance Model powered by QUALHYMO’ – to help local governments achieve desired urban stream health and environmental 
protection outcomes at a watershed scale.
Beyond the Guidebook builds on the foundation provided by Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia. Released in 2002, its underlying premise that land development and watershed protection can be compatible represented a radical shift in thinking. The Guidebook recognized that water volume is something over which local government has control through its infrastructure policies, practices and standards.
‘Made in BC’ Educational Approach
At the Beyond the Guidebook Seminar, Chris Jensen, Ministry of Community Services, explained the regulatory and legal framework in a presentation titled Integration of Rainwater Management and Green Infrastructure: The Province’s Perspective. His presentation was structured in two parts: Education; Financial Incentives.
“In BC, we have come to the realization that prescriptive approaches stifle innovation. By telling people how far they must go, that’s as far as they go. They don’t go much beyond what is required for an approval. This is the story that we are hearing from people in Washington State,” stated Chris Jensen
To Learn More:
Click on Beyond the Guidebook Seminar.