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“Thinking like a system means you do not make decisions at the site scale. It is not about a particular stream reach or cross-section, or a bridge or a culvert. You need to step back and look at the big picture. You need to look at the entire stream network and what these flows are doing over time an in the landscape of the watershed. It is not just that the forest owes its causal power to the landscape features. The hydrological response of the landscape owes its power to the landscape feature and to the climate feature. That’s the space-time relationship, stated Younes Alila.

Kongjian Yu pioneered China’s “sponge city” concept—less concrete and more green spaces to exploit stormwater instead of fighting it. Metropolises all over the world are following suit. “Industrialized engineering solutions have messed up the whole water system globally. You have to solve the problem holistically, and the sponge city is a nature-based, holistic solution. It is inexpensive, and it can be done at a small or large scale. You can have your garden, but you also have to plan from the top. It is a sponge planet, it is a sponge countryside, it is a sponge urban district,” stated Konjian Yu.

“When I look back at our history, I think wow, how did we do so much applied research. We had a need and Hans Schreier had grad students who were interested in doing the research. Win-win,” stated Richard Boase. “This research was in pursuit of making changes to the fabric of our urbanized areas. I was so encapsulated by what I saw around me, and the need for change, that my mind was always racing. And I needed to find ways to do research into what we were talking about.”

“Drainage is but a sub-set of municipal engineering. Historical engineering practice did not consider some of the broader objectives that we now try to address through green infrastructure. Drainage in the context of urban planning and development decisions has historically been an afterthought,” stated Hugh Fraser. “Delta urban areas are built out. The municipality is effectively limited to retrofitting of rain gardens within road corridors in order to provide rainwater infiltration that protects stream health. Road rights-of-way account for one-third of the land area of a typical urban watershed.”

For three decades, we have known what we must do. So why are streams still degrading? Why has our region fallen behind Washington State, Oregon and California? And what are the RISKS when we FAIL to get it right? “While many advances have been made in managing rainwater on-site, BC communities are failing to utilize practices that directly benefit streams during droughts and floods. The needs of BC communities closely align with the other west coast areas that suffer from adverse stream flows rather than the degradation of water quality which is the case on the east coast,” stated Jim Dumont.

“Many homeowners are now familiar with how much they are using because the number is on their utility bill. It really is important that they be able to see how much outdoor water use contributes to their total water demand. The BC Landscape Water Calculator does this. We are encouraging people to transform their front yards by replacing grass with water efficient plants. We are promoting both water efficient and native plants. The BC Landscape Water Calculator provides them with choices for both,” stated Amy Peters.

A commitment by Metro Vancouver municipalities to integrate land use and drainage planning was the genesis for Integrated Stormwater Management Plans (ISMPs). “When the Reference Panel reported back to the Waste Management Committee in July 2008, we identified the ISMP process as a sleeper issue because there are 130 watersheds in the region; and continuation of the old-business-as-usual would potentially result in an aggregate unfunded liability that could easily equal the $1.4 billion cost of sewage treatment,” stated Kim Stephens.

“Whether it’s the community coming together to build rain gardens or adopt catch basins, dedicated volunteer streamkeepers who put in countless hours restoring and protecting important salmon habitat, or government decision-makers and employees enacting policies, everyone has a role to play in advancing Green Infrastructure implementation. There’s more work to be done as we collectively travel along a path to find upstream, proactive solutions to climate change impacts and growing urban centres,” stated Joanna Ashworth.

“Since 1996 I have been working across Vancouver Island, both reviewing development proposals and monitoring project implementation. In the last couple of years I have been really pleased to see a huge shift take place in the way projects are being done. As I reflect on the current situation, the change in attitude is really gaining momentum. Everywhere I go I am seeing evidence of the new ethic. It is not that everyone is perfect, but the change is really coming,” stated Maggie Henigman.

There were more than 275 million registered motor vehicles in the U.S. in 2018. Accommodating that number of vehicles requires an enormous network of parking lots, the vast majority of which are made of impervious pavement that rainwater cannot infiltrate. Until now, researchers have been unable to gauge the full extent of impervious parking lot coverage in a scientifically sound way. Findings from the model could be valuable for urban planners and watershed managers as they plan new developments or retrofit existing areas where runoff pollution is a major issue, according to James Falcone of the USGS.