CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “Few people know how important the Fraser Valley is to food security for British Columbia. The question is…does anyone care, really?” – Ted van der Gulik, President of the Partnership for Water Sustainability, and former Senior Engineer in the Ministry of Agriculture (6th installment in a preview series)
Note to Reader:
Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on November 19, 2024 features Ted van der Gulik and his perspective on how British Columbia can achieve food security. As the former Senior Engineer in the BC Ministry of Agriculture, he was ahead of his time when he spearheaded development of the Agriculture Water Demand Model almost two decades ago. With this tool, British Columbia has been able to quantify what the province has versus what the province needs with respect to land and water for food security.
STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Is our food security slipping away without anyone noticing? – extracts from a conversation with Ted van der Gulik
The story behind the story is structured in four parts (topics). The bookends are about the existing Agriculture Land Reserve and a potential Agriculture Water Reserve as foundation pieces for food security. In between are high-level perspectives about a mind-set change and the pragmatic tools we now have to protect water and soil.
The spotlight in Topic One is on the food lands in the Fraser Valley because few people in British Columbia know or appreciate how important the Agriculture Land Reserve in the Fraser Valley is to food security for British Columbia. Also, that water security is key to food security.
TOPIC ONE – Agricultural Land Use Inventories reveal that, even with the ALR, we are losing our best farmland without even knowing it
“With high reliance on imported food from places like California and Mexico – and increasing risks related to those sources – British Columbia had the incredible foresight to legally protect the very limited amount of land we have that can grow food,” explains Ted van der Gulik.
“Even in 1973, Joan Sawicki reminds me, it was recognized that the ALR could only be a first step in safeguarding our food security. Joan was an original employee of the Agricultural Land Commission and has remained a strong advocate of the ALR ever since. She is also an Ambassador of the Partnership for Water Sustainability.”
“The Fraser Valley can grow a lot of the food that we need…vegetables, dairy and poultry. The fertile Fraser Valley is the best farmland in the province. But we are slowly losing our land base for growing food. And it is not because land is coming out of the Agricultural Land Reserve. Rather, it is all about what is happening on the land within the ALR.”
The ALR saved the land for farming but…
“At a time when most other jurisdictions continue to lose their food lands, BC’s Agriculture Land Reserve remains the most successful agricultural land preservation program in North America,” says Joan Sawicki.
“While the program has enjoyed generally broad public support during its 50-year history – and that in itself is amazing – we cannot afford to take it for granted or to be complacent.”
“With climate change, rising transportation costs, urbanization, land degradation and other food supply challenges, the risks associated with our reliance upon imported food are now greater than ever. Meanwhile, internally, pressures upon and within the ALR continue unabated, and may actually be increasing.”
“We need to embrace the incredible legacy that is the ALR and take the needed steps to nurture, facilitate and encourage farming within it, if we are serious about achieving food security for present and future generations of British Columbians.“
TOPIC TWO – We need to embrace a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil
“At the Asset Management BC annual conference this month, I listened to Michael Blackstock of the Gitxsan Nation deliver the keynote address,” continues Ted van der Gulik. “His claim to fame is Blue Ecology and I am proud to say that Michael Blackstock is an Ambassador of the Partnership for Water Sustainability.”
“Michael is an original thinker. He spoke to the pressing need for us to embrace what he describes as Caretaker Leadership if we are to truly protect water and soil. To quote Michael, it costs zero dollars to change your attitude.”
There is untapped Natural Intelligence in nature
“Michael explains that Blue Ecology is about creating a new form of knowledge by interweaving useful threads from our two cultures. Michael’s perspective on the need for an attitude change regarding our relationship with the land and with water resonates with me.”
“At the Asset Management BC conference, Michael introduced a new paradigm which he defines as Natural Intelligence. He talked about the need for balance through fusion of Artificial Intelligence and Natural Intelligence through Blue Ecology.”
“For British Columbia to move ahead, we all need to be on the same page. This requires trust in what the science is telling us about the changing climate and what the consequences mean for water and food security.”
“Blue Ecology reinforces the mind-set change that is necessary to support widespread use of tools and resources that the Partnership for Water Sustainability has been pioneering for more than two decades to help local governments design with nature.”
TOPIC THREE – We already have the tools to support a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil
Ted van der Gulik’s impact as an innovator extends into the urban setting. His vision for use and conservation of water and soil aligns with the Caretaker Leadership vision espoused by Michael Blackstock. He has spearheaded implementation of multiple online calculators that enable improved land and water management across sectors.
Ted has often been asked why the Ministry of Agriculture chaired the inter-governmental Water Balance Model Partnership. He would always reply by stating: “Because the water balance consequences of urbanization in the uplands are felt in the agricultural lowlands!”
Setting targets for efficient outdoor water use
Another of Ted van der Guilk’s innovations is the BC Landscape Water Calculator. It is a spinoff from the Agriculture Water Demand Model.
“Targeting seasonal outdoor water use represents the best opportunity to achieve water use in balance with a changing seasonal water cycle. Soil depth as an ‘absorbent sponge’ is a primary water management tool for climate adaptation, during both dry-weather and wet-weather periods,” explains Ted van der Gulik.
“The general populace does not appear to be accepting of what science is telling us. It is very easy to just not believe science and accept what is happening to be just temporary anomalies. The issue of climate change is a good example.”
TOPIC FOUR – The Agriculture Water Demand Model generates numbers that make the case for establishing Agriculture Water Reserves
“Preserving the best farmland is half the equation for our ensuring food security. The other half is about securing and delivering water to irrigate the food lands that we need for food security. That means quantify how much we need and what infrastructure we will require,” continues Ted van der Gulik.
“With longer and drier summers being the new reality for water management, the Agriculture Water Demand Model is a useful tool in developing water management plans to achieve food security in British Columbia. And given the accuracy of the land use inventories, we can reliably estimate the total water need for agricultural irrigation. This further means that the Province can align water allocation and water use.”
Water is life and without water, there is no food
“The Water Sustainability Act includes language for Agricultural Water Reserves. I believe this is an idea whose time has come. It is in the WSA. Now it can be triggered. But that would require political will and investment of political capital at a time when other issues are top-of-mind for our elected representatives.”
“It is also necessary to link water allocation and water licensing. Currently, there are too many users that are not licenced to take water. At the same time, we must continually strive to improve the licensing system by taking advantage of all the science as it comes along.”
Food security is still within our grasp
“Collectively what we need in British Columbia is a mind-set change to affect an attitude shift,” emphasizes Ted van der Gulik. “People need to care about what is done to land and water so that they can be protected for the benefit of everyone.”
“Without a shift in thinking, sustainable water management may never be achieved in British Columbia. We need to secure water for First Nations, environmental flow needs, food security, domestic and other needs.”
“Embracing an attitude change will be very difficult and something that cannot be led by one entity alone. Recent elections in British Columbia and the United States tell us that the populace is split 50/50 on many issues and the management of water may be similar.”
“Getting everyone on the same page will require building trust between all sectors and accepting what mainstream science is telling us. Where and how do we start, that is the big unknown,” concludes Ted van der Gulik.
Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series
To read the complete 3-part story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Is our food security slipping away without anyone noticing?
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