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The Primer provided local governments with a starting point for applying lessons learned over the previous decade. “By addressing what appropriate and affordable should mean in practice, the Primer deals with two separate dimensions of an integrated Watershed Plan. The first is the watershed itself, where the focus is on the relationship between rainfall and resulting flow rates in streams. The second is the storm drainage system, where the focus is on infrastructure and the level of service,” stated Jim Dumont.

“The Primer introduces the issue of the ‘unfunded infrastructure liability’. Viewing the watershed through an asset management lens provides local governments with a driver to require that development practices mimic the Water Balance,” states Craig Wightman. The Primer is an outcome of collaboration involving Living Rivers, the British Columbia Conservation Foundation, the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, the Mid-Vancouver Island Habitat Enhancement Society, and the City of Parksville.

“While much attention is given to the technical and legal aspects of the Land Development Process, we are not aware of anyone who has addressed administration. At the heart of the Primer, then, is the discussion at the end of Section 6 about Administrative Process Requirements. This piece of the puzzle is the key to implementation of effective rainwater management systems on private property,” stated Tim Pringle. “The Primer will assist practitioners whose work addresses land subdivision concerns.”

“Released circa 1993, Stream Stewardship: A Guide for Planners and Developers document was an early, and in some respects the first, local government focussed design with nature guide,” recalled Erik Karlsen. “Looking back, if the Stewardship Series was the first wave, the work of UBC’s James Taylor Chair on Sustainable Urban Landscapes was the second, and the Water Balance Approach is the third. Each of these ‘waves’ was initiated by different ‘groups’; but over time they merged from one to the other.”

“We spent the last half a century trying to control runoff with dikes, storm sewers, curbs and gutters. We can’t engineer away our problems fast enough, and have to look at other, lower impact solutions. Now, increased development and increased storm intensity from climate change are increasing peak flows and altering the rules of the game,” stated Anna Warwick Sears. “The Okanagan is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of unmanaged stormwater and rainwater because all surface water flows into the lake system that runs along the bottom of the valley.”

“The website is designed to provide the complete story on integrated land and water management – why, what, where and how. Because we have such a strong following in the United States, we do make a special effort to include American stories. We cannot help but wonder about the extent to which the BC experience may be subtlety influencing thinking in the United States,” states Mike Tanner.

“Local governments and others can share success stories, information, practical tools and ideas about water sustainability and conservation. “This is another major step forward to ensuring British Columbians have access to safe, clean and abundant water supplies. This resource will allow those responsible for water management to develop tools and programs that address water sustainability and to share their knowledge and successes with others,” stated the Hon. Bill Barisoff.

“The Primer is a ‘bridging document’ because it illustrates how to seamlessly integrate the legal and administrative parts of the Land Development Process through the designing with nature and rainwater management lens.” states Tim Pringle.

“The Primer introduces the issue of the ‘unfunded infrastructure liability’. Viewing the watershed through an asset management lens provides local governments with a driver to require that development practices mimic the Water Balance,” states Craig Wightman.

“What was a dream in 2002, when the Province released ‘Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for BC’, may now in fact be achievable. We have the tools and experience to ‘design with nature’ in order to soften the ‘water footprint’ of development. Watershed restoration is within our grasp,” stated Peter Law.