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“We had one-on-one conversations with an ‘ad hoc mayors and chairs focus group’ that comprised key contacts from various regions. A distinguishing feature of this group was that it comprised elected officials known for their commitment to sustainability’ because they believed it to be an achievable community goal. Furthermore, they had all thought about how to achieve environmental, economic and social objectives through a community’s infrastructure choices. Therefore, they constituted an ideal focus group,” stated Kim Stephens.

“Experience has taught engineers that we must always be learning, stretching the bounds of expertise, and anticipating new requirements,” wrote Jim Dumont. “We will be able to advance the science and engineering practice in a manner intended by the author and proponents of the Guidebook. Is it time to now go ‘Beyond the Guidebook’? Do we have the knowledge to allow us to do this? The answer to both questions should be yes.”

“The focus was on what the City of Surrey believes it can systematically accomplish on-the-ground, at a watershed scale, now and over the next 50 years by building on the East Clayton experience. The emphasis was on the approach the City is developing under the umbrella of the Fergus Creek ISMP to facilitate changes in how land is developed and/or redeveloped,” reported Remi Dube.

“The Water Sustainability Action Plan is aimed at building capacity by improving awareness about effective approaches to the sustainable use of water resources and demonstrating how to integrate these approaches into land and resource planning, development and management decisions at the regional, community through to site levels.” stated Ray Fung.

“We focussed on the South Okanagan because it’s a ready-made pilot project that’s manageable in scale, and then we can roll out what we find across the province,” stated Kim Stephens.

Too often, communities respond to 21st century water problems with 20th century solutions— bigger pipes and bigger pumps leading to bigger tax bills” says Michael M’Gonigle, Eco- Research Chair of Law and Policy at the University of Victoria. “Communities are missing out the full potential of water conservation and efficiency.”