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asset management for sustainable service delivery

    LOCAL GOVERNMENT POLICY IMPACTS RIPPLE THROUGH TIME: “The growing cost of neglect, combined with the urgency of the flood liability issue in particular, is the driver for linking municipal infrastructure asset management and stream health as cause-and-effect,” wrote Kim Stephens, Partnership for Water Sustainability, in an essay written for new politicians after the 2022 local government elections in British Columbia


    “My over-arching message to those elected in October 2022 is succinct: Get the water part right in a changing climate, and you will be amazed how other parts of the community resiliency puzzle then fall into place. A supporting message is this: Our land ethic has consequences for water. This means elected representatives need to understand why development practices disconnect the water balance pathways that power stream-ecology. They also need to understand why a water-first approach to green infrastructure can reconnect the two,” stated Kim Stephens.

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    ARTICLE: “Local Governments invest in youth at Vancouver Island University – a conversation with Graham Sakaki, Regional Research Institute Manager” (Asset Management BC Newsletter, Summer 2023)


    “The story behind the story is about the importance of embedding knowledge of EAP into the youth who are going to be the future of our local governments. The framework that we have set up ensures this will happen. Vancouver Island University, as a smaller university, is very focused on applied research and community engagement. This is a good fit for the EAP mission. There are lots of partnerships that exist for selfish reasons. But the EAP Partnership is selfless, and from all angles. It is a leap of faith for member local governments. Commitment to passing the baton is unwavering,” stated Graham Sakaki.

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    ARTICLE: “Our reflections on sharing a mission with Wally Wells” – by Paul Chapman and Kim Stephens (Asset Management BC Newsletter, Summer 2023)


    “Our discussions lead to an expanded common vocabulary. Sustainable Service Delivery, Eco-Assets and Eco-Asset Management, the Ecological Accounting Process, Municipal Natural Asset Inventory, Riparian Deficit, and watershed stewardship are some of the words in our new common tongue. The rabid environmentalist, the cold-hearted accountant and the aloof engineer could come together and focus on a common goal – Water Balance. At a very key level, it is about our relationship with water and with each other. We design and build our communities based on our relationship to water,” stated Paul Chapman.

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    STORIES OF INTER-REGIONAL COLLABORATION: “Stream Systems and Watershed Stewardship in the Comox Valley: Moving Towards Sustainable Service Delivery” — 2nd in the series of stories behind the stories released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in May 2023


    “When people are engaged, they are interested in the oral history of the place. How people in the community are engaged is the education piece. The more they engage, the more they can be part of the solution because they understand the restrictions that we operate under as local government. It becomes quite a collaborative upbringing you could say. For the Village of Cumberland, it is really important as a smaller municipality to partner with other Comox Valley local governments and with local community groups,” stated Michelle Mason.

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    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Moving Towards Sustainable Service Delivery in the Comox Valley” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in May 2023


    “I am a project person. I come from a project background and am used to the stages of a project – from conception through budgeting, procurement, construction, and commissioning. It is a very structured spectrum of activities. There is a defined beginning and end. But that is not the way it is in the world of water stewardship. It is a bit like a creek. It just meanders all over the place such that you just cannot seem to get things to completion even when the process is a good one. You learn that this is what it means to be on a journey,” stated Marc Rutten.

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    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Trust is the currency of collaboration in the Comox Valley” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in May 2023


    “The thing too about the speed of trust in our community is the stewardship sector and its strength. It has always been strong. And that has long been part of the messaging out of the Comox Valley. Trust is so critical in forming relationships with interested parties such as the stewardship sector. After the years of understanding each other’s perspectives, we can have a conversation about solutions. I can ask them questions because they have ears to ground, and they can ask me about and give input to regulatory changes,” stated Nancy Gothhard.

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    ARTICLE: “What would you tell newly elected local government representatives about Sustainable Service Delivery through asset management? – A water sustainability perspective “(Winter 2023 issue of Asset Management BC Newsletter)


    “My over-arching message to those elected in October 2022 is succinct: Get the water part right in a changing climate, and you will be amazed how other parts of the community resiliency puzzle then fall into place. A supporting message is this: Our land ethic has consequences for water. This means elected representatives need to understand why development practices disconnect the water balance pathways that power stream-ecology. They also need to understand why a water-first approach to green infrastructure can reconnect the two,” stated Kim Stephens.

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    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Local governments invest in youth at Vancouver Island University” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in April 2023


    “The story behind the story is about the importance of embedding knowledge of EAP into the youth who are going to be the future of our local governments. The framework that we have set up ensures this will happen. We have a commitment from the Partnership for Water Sustainability to provide oversight and mentoring during a 3-year transition period. And three local governments – Municipality of North Cowichan, City of Nanaimo, and the Regional District of Nanaimo – are committed to providing project work experience for students,” stated Graham Sakaki.

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    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: History and application of a science-based road map for either protecting or restoring stream system integrity” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in March 2023


    In the 1990s, Puget Sound research correlated land use changes with impacts on stream system condition. This was the springboard for BC to develop methodologies and metrics for science-based solutions. “It was when I decided to take advantage of a Fellowship Program to do my PhD that I hooked up with Rich Horner. This was at the start of the Puget Sound research project and proved to be good timing. We looked at why salmon stocks were declining in Puget Sound. We established that the loss of riparian and watershed land cover has a real impact before water quality does,” stated Chris May.

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    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Communities need annual budgets to tackle the Riparian Deficit along streams” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in March 2023


    The requirement for an Asset Management Plan addresses the disconnect between land use oversight and direct responsibility for maintenance and management of stream corridor condition. “The oversight question is one that we are addressing with EAP, the Ecological Accounting Process. Local governments have real data to quantify the financial value of streams as physical assets. This metric allows them to put streams into the basket of local government asset management responsibilities,” stated Tim Pringle.

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