Convening for Action in British Columbia

FLASHBACK TO 2008: “Infrastructure grant programs enable the government of British Columbia to influence behaviour and advance the ‘New Business As Usual’. The vision is to move toward water sustainability by implementing green infrastructure policies and practices,” stated Deputy Minister Dale Wall in his keynote address at the Gaining Ground Summit held in Victoria

Note to Reader:

The following post is an extract from a story originally published in July 2009. To download a report-style, PDF version of the complete story, click on The Province of British Columbia’s Expectations and Programs for Green Communities

The Green Infrastructure Partnership (GIP) was an original element of the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia, released in 2004. The early success of the GIP helped to lay a strong foundation for incorporation of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC. This entity is now the hub for a ‘convening for action’ network in the local government setting, and the “keeper of the GIP legacy”.

Under the umbrella of the Water Sustainability Action Plan, the GIP rolled out Beyond the Guidebook at a Vancouver seminar in November 2007. Six months later, in May 2008, the Deputy Minister (Dale Wall) for the Ministry of Community Services used the occasion of a keynote address at the Gaining Ground Summit to make an inter-ministerial announcement about the embryo Beyond the Guidebook initiative.

Released by the Province in 2002, Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia is the foundation document for a “design with nature” approach to land development and infrastructure servicing that achieves this goal: protect and/or restore hydrologic integrity.

Provincial Plans & Strategies

The Green Communities Initiative encompasses a number of plans and strategies that complement and/or support Living Water Smart, BC’s Water Plan.

“Living Water Smart is a provincial strategy; we must look at it as a shared responsibility,” Glen brown (120p) states Glen Brown. At the time, he was an Executive Director with the Ministry of Community Services.

”Actually, it is not one strategy; the Province has a number of strategies, including the Green Communities Initiative and the BC Climate Action Plan. These are the visionary documents that shape the Ministry’s grant programs; they provide us with direction as to where the Province wants to go.

“The Province is looking at raising the bar as far as what we are trying to accomplish with standards, provincial legislation and infrastructure grant programs.”

Leveraging Change Through Grants

“Integration of legislative goals and strategies with grant programs is achieved through the combination of Eligibility Requirements, Evaluation Criteria, and Conditionality of Contracts. These three items provide the road-map for transitioning from today’s expectations to tomorrow’s standards. Over time, we are incrementally raising the bar.

“Conditionality of Contracts refers to what we ask local governments to do if they are successful in meeting the Eligibility Requirements and Evaluation Criteria. This is where we establish the clear link to program goals and objectives.”

The New Business As Usual

Dale Wall, the Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Community Services used the occasion of a keynote address at the Gaining Ground Summit in May 2008 to make an inter-ministerial announcement.

“We are using the slogan The New Business As Usual to convey the message that, for change to really occur, practices that until now have been viewed as the exception must become the norm moving forward”, stated Dale Wall. “We have to build regulatory models and develop models of practice and expertise to support The New Business As Usual.”

Demonstration Applications on Vancouver Island

“Vancouver Island is the pilot region for implementing Beyond the Guidebook: The New Business As Usual. The Real Estate Foundation, the Ministry of Environment, and the Ministry of Community Services are co-funding CAVI – Convening for Action on Vancouver Island.

“The shared vision is to move toward water sustainability by implementing green infrastructure policies and practices. This is a multi-year commitment by the funding agencies.”