“Because the concept of the Rainfall Spectrum was new territory for drainage engineers, the MAR established a point of departure that was familiar to them so that they would readily make the transition to a new way of thinking – and that is, how to manage all 180 ‘rainfall-days’ in a year, not just one or two extreme storm events.”
“It helps to look back to understand how we got to here. In 2000, DFO released Urban Stormwater Guidelines and Best Management Practices for Protection of Fish and Fish Habitat. It got practitioners thinking about how to capture rainfall in order to reduce runoff volume and protect water quality,” states Corinio Salomi.
“When you think about what is happening with this Water Balance tool in terms of consistency, and in terms of what you might call a consensus standard and agreed approach, it is formulating the problem in a way that is technically defendable…and that is workable,” stated Dr. Charles Rowney.
“As we have been working on the WBM, we only go as complicated as is necessary. We strive to make the tool as simple as possible, but no simpler. It has to be consistent, cheap and workable with limited data. It has to fit the local context; and it has to evolve because we are not at the end point today. The WBM will continue to grow and adapt over time,” concluded Dr. Charles Rowney.
“Local governments in BC are faced with this challenge: the initial capital cost of infrastructure is about 20% of the life-cycle cost; the other 80% largely represents a future unfunded liability. Fiscal constraints provide a powerful impetus for doing business differently to ‘achieve more with less’,” states Richard Boase.
“The WBM Express will open the door to all kinds of educational opportunities. It will be a resource for developers and others to help the public understand the effect of their choices and decisions on the natural environment. It could be incorporated into the curricula for high school and post-secondary institutions,” states Carie Baron.
“In 2001, Metro Vancouver’s member municipalities recognized the benefits of this approach and made a legal commitment to the Province to have ISMPs in place by 2014 for their watersheds,” reports Robert Hicks.
“Local governments bear the entire financial burden to stabilize and restore watercourses impacted by increased rainwater runoff volume after land is developed or redeveloped. The resulting unfunded ‘infrastructure liability’ is a driver for the ISMP Course Correction,” stated Ted van der Gulik.
“The Province is challenging local governments to think about what infrastructure asset management entails BEFORE an asset is built. The paradigm-shift starts with land use planning and determining what services can be provided sustainably, both fiscally and ecologically,” stated Glen Brown.
“Conditions that apply to the approved Metro Vancouver plan highlight the importance of land use planning in protecting stream health. The conditions focus attention on how the degree, type and location of land development can affect the long-term health of the watershed,” summarizes Avtar Sundher, Ministry of Environment.
