Green Infrastructure

The “Green Infrastructure Guide: Issues, Implementation Strategies and Success Stories” provides guidance on how local governments may, using legal and policy strategies, encourage or require more sustainable infrastructure designs. It refers readers to strategies, and highlights case studies of local governments that have already taken steps to incorporate a green infrastructure approach. The focus is on implementation mechanisms, issues and barriers, and on what lessons have been learned from experiences to date.

Seattle11 – Beyond the Guidebook (240p)
KAS
“Beyond the Guidebook” is an initiative that builds on the foundation provided by “Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia”. This inter-governmental initiative advances a runoff-based approach and tool – the ‘Water Balance Model powered by QUALHYMO' – to help local governments achieve desired urban stream health and environmental protection outcomes at a watershed scale.

Published in 2002, “Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia” was a catalyst for change that has resulted in British Columbia achieving international recognition as a leader in implementing a natural systems approach to rainwater management. “Beyond the Guidebook” is an initiative that builds on this foundation by advancing a runoff-based approach and tool – the ‘Water Balance Model powered by QUALHYMO' – to help local governments achieve desired urban stream health and environmental protection outcomes at a watershed scale.

The purpose of the Urban Forest Research Project is to provide planners, developers and municipal engineers with the tools and research they need to approach rainwater management in a more integrated and sustainable manner. Th University of British Columbia has established a website to showcase the project results and link to web stories on the Rainwater Management Community-of-Interest.

What is the real value of 'sustainability' and 'green buildings', and how can you benefit from this? This seminar shatters the myth that 'green costs more'.

Green Value means thinking about and realizing land use strategies that accommodate settlement needs in practical ways while protecting the ecological resources upon which our communities depend. Understanding green value approaches means having positive options for managing growth, the design of communities, buildings and sustaining the ecology.

Courtenay was the first British Columbia municipality to implement a policy requiring a minimum soil depth on development sites for reduction of rainwater runoff volume. “Because the City places importance on the soil sponge as a rainwater management tool, we are currently exploring options to ensure that developers and house builders fulfil their obligations to provide and preserve the minimum required depth,” stated Sandy Pridmore.

The Partners Forum in March 2007 provided a timely opportunity for Partners to share success stories and lessons learned in implementing green infrastructure. “While considerable research has been done in the natural environment, very little has been in an urban setting anywhere in North America. We have installed 60 tree canopy climate stations across the North Shore,” stated Richard Boase.

The Green Value and Develop with Care programs of the Real Estate Foundation and BC Ministry of Environment, respectively, have produced a collection of twelve case studies that celebrate leading examples of real estate development projects in Vancouver Island communities. These case studies illustrate how green value approaches have been implemented, and include a review of the benefits/liabilities of each project.

15th Street in West Vancouver is a major north-south connector route that links the Upper Levels Highway to Marine Drive. When this busy road was reconstructed, a rain garden was incorported in the right-of-way to have a positive environmental outcome. The success of this pilot project is leading to other rain garden applications within the District.