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“The project ‘Sustainable Watershed Systems, through Asset Management’ describes a whole-system, water balance approach to community development and infrastructure servicing,” stated Kim Stephens. “As understanding grows, local governments will progress incrementally along the Asset Management Continuum for Sustainable Service Delivery. Step Three is Sustainable Watershed Systems. My objective in meeting with SILG was to plant seeds. Six months from now we will see whether and/or how the seeds have taken root.”

“Kim Stephens was able to communicate concepts in a way that made sense to the class. They understood him perfectly,” observed Todd Pugh, sessional instructor for Capilano’s Local Government Administration Certificate program. “It is such a mix of people – there were some who would have liked to hear more about the science behind what he presented, and for others it was more science than they’ve experienced since elementary school. So on the whole, I think he hit the right mix.”

North Vancouver City is a case study for a UBC design course on integration of landscape architecture into urban rainwater management strategies. “Stormwater management is part of landscape architectural design and is an important consideration for every project. The lecture by Kim Stephens was excellent and well-paced,” stated Daniel Roehr, Associate Professor. “He provided clarity regarding a course objective, which is to design at different scales, using the reverse design strategy, site and details first before urban and regional scale.”

“In reflecting on our 2001 three day capacity building course in Newcastle, it did more than just build my capacity as a strategic natural resource planner. It fuelled my enthusiasm as an agent of change in our own 15 year journey in urban water cycle management,” stated Karenne Jurd. “The window into BC water management he opened showed us ‘what was possible’. It was a seminal moment in time.”

“Implementation of asset management along with the associated evolution of local government thinking is a continuous quality improvement process, not a discrete task. This led us to the concept of a continuum. The relevance of this way of thinking is that different local governments will always be at different points and different levels of maturity along the asset management continuum,” wrote Ray Fung (photo left) and Glen Brown in their Sitelines article.

If we get the hydrology right, water quality typically takes care of itself in a residential development. “When the goal of land servicing practices is pre-settlement hydrology, this reduces the quantity of urban runoff discharged into a stream. It also improves the quality of the remainder of that which is discharged. In short, mimicking the natural water balance has a dual benefit,” emphasized Richard Horner.

“The BC Framework sets strategic direction for asset management and its implementation in BC. It gives communities guidance to apply science-based methodologies and tools to plan for sustainability and resilience within their communities. Most critically, it encourages communities to think about what asset management entails at the land-use planning stage, when levels of service that can be provided sustainably—fiscally and ecologically—are determined,” wrote Glen Brown.

“Stream health and what happens on the land are connected. In the early 1990’s, the ‘Coho Salmon crisis’ raised the alarm that changes in hydrology caused by land development were resulting in small stream salmon demise. The stewardship sector was the catalyst for restorative action in BC,” stated Peter Law. “Today, community organizations partner with local governments to monitor and restore local watershed health.”

In his 1969 book, Design With Nature, Ian McHarg pioneered the concept of environmental planning. “So, I commend Design with Nature to your sympathetic consideration. The title contains a gradient of meaning. It can be interpreted as simply descriptive of a planning method, deferential to places and peoples, it can invoke the Grand Design, it can emphasize the conjunction with and, finally it can be read as an imperative. DESIGN WITH NATURE!,” wrote Ian McHarg.

“Everyone learns about the water cycle in elementary school, but by high school most have forgotten what they learned,” said Kim Stephens. “What does this mean for communities? Consider that a legacy of community and infrastructure design practices has failed to protect the natural water balance (hydrologic integrity). Failure has financial, level‐of‐service and life‐cycle impacts and implications for taxpayers. The results can be very expensive to fix. Local governments are starting to recognize that watersheds are natural assets that have value, and ecosystem services have a role in municipal service delivery.”