Patrick Lucey (120p)
The centuries-old approach of piping water off the land as fast as possible and dumping it into waterways is failing fast. Shifting to sustainability by design is a fundamentally new approach.
Peter MacDonagh (120p) – Deep Root
In his lecture, Peter MacDonagh illustrated the critical role of oxygen rich, moist soils protected by vegetation in urban environments, using a broad cross-section of supporting quantitative research in green infrastructure.
Rain to Resource Workshop – logo
While designs for such features would vary from the “wet” coast to the dry interior of B.C., the concept is basically the same. Not only do they capture rainwater, they are also more attractive than asphalt or concrete.
According to Kevin Lagan, the dramatic change in site characteristics meant rainwater runoff had to be captured to maintain a before development hydrologic regime, if the project was to avoid downstream impacts.
Impaired soils function poorly as reservoirs and contribute to a host of urban dilemmas such as shallow root systems; excess artificial irrigation, and impeded groundwater recharge.
District of Central Saanich – Nirmal and Roland (160p)
The District is promoting the use of innovative design approaches to restore the dispersal of rainwater runoff flows to near pre-development levels.
“To specifically answer the question, you can start with the forested condition even though some or all of the trees have been removed,” stated Jim Dumont. “This will provide you with an opportunity to compare what was lost to what might have been, and in so doing allow you to create a vision of the future watershed. For the purposes of a Water Balance Model simulation, the starting scenario can be the watershed in any state, whether that is forested, existing urban, future planning, or just about any condition that you may wish to assess. “
As communities become environmentally conscious and involved, they modify and reach beyond old development-impact reduction methods to more interlinked, efficient and cost-effective strategies at site, neighborhood and regional levels.
“We are looking at our building inspectors doing more than just inspecting plumbing and buildings. We want them to be more involved at the front-end of the process, not the back-end when the building is being built. We want them involved at the subdivision stage so that they understand what we want to achieve. In other words, it is more than just a building going up, The building permit is for the site. The site needs to be managed,” stated Kevin Lagan.
While its uses are well known in rural areas where open jars on rooftops are the norm, urban Malaysia is just beginning to reap its benefits. Lecturer Norhaiza Nordin of University College of Engineering and Technology in Kuantan said that proper use of rainwater under the Rain Water Management System could minimise erosion and flooding.
