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Looking into the future, collaboratively developed Water Sustainability Plans can integrate water and land use planning and can be combined with other local, regional or provincial planning processes to address water-related issues. “The scale and scope of each plan – and the process used to develop it – would be unique, and would reflect the needs and interests of the watersheds affected,” states Jennifer Vigano.

Develop with Care 2014 is a tool to engage with local governments, planners, developers and others involved in land use about the provincial mandate and issues. “Develop with Care 2014 incorporates the integration piece that now makes the direct connection to the Built Environment and the local government mandate. A focus on the Built Environment provides an opportunity to look at environmental protection from perspective of land use, and get out in front of issues,” stated Helene Roberge.

“Some communities are already anticipating and adapting to our changing climate, and they are using existing planning legislation and tools. Being able to start with good information about projected future conditions is key to assessing the risks and vulnerabilities of a particular location,” says Cathy Leblanc. “Each community is different and by developing its own strategies for mainstreaming adaptation into its decisions and operations, it will become more resilient.”

Several years in the making, the BC Framework is aligned with the asset management requirements for the Province’s capital grants programs, and is therefore a game-changer. “We can view asset management as a continuum. Communities will progress along it incrementally as their understanding grows,” states Liam Edwards. “They can achieve the goal of Sustainable Service Delivery for watershed systems.”

“The Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM), in partnership with the Province and Asset Management BC, developed the BC Framework. It sets strategic direction for asset management and its implementation in BC,” states Wally Wells. “The BC Framework defines asset management as a continuous process (not a discrete task). The PLAN is only a part of the overall process. The PROCESS deals with all of the components necessary to manage the built and natural environments as integrated components.”

“We see there is a gap in practitioner education and professional development. Our objective is to create a pool of trained and qualified practitioners of the Water Balance Methodology. From a local government perspective, you need that assurance that what you are getting in the way of analyses is being completed correctly,” stated Kim Stephens.

“We will work with Australian cities to set decade by decade goals out to 2050 for increased overall tree coverage,” stated Acting Minister for Cities Greg Hunt. “Green cities — cities with high levels of trees, foliage and green spaces — provide enormous benefits to their residents. Increasing urban canopy coverage decreases heat, which improves health and quality of life.” He emphasised the susceptibility to extreme heat of people living in large cities. Urban development pressures can lead to treeless streets that amplify the “heat island” effect on hot days.

“Healthier watersheds can handle high and low rainfall better, and are therefore more resilient to the coming changes,” stated Kris La Rose. “From the regional perspective, mitigation of flood risk, water conservation and restoration and protection of our streams and rivers are all key priorities. The increase in extreme weather is highlighting the need to build better resiliency into the natural systems that we all rely so heavily upon.”

“Slow it – Sink it – Spread it. This simple saying summarizes the means by which we can manage Rain Water to alleviate both drought and flooding. This saying also summarizes the purpose behind the Water Balance Model Express,” stated Glenn Westendorp. “The Express allows home owners and small developers the ability to explore the means by which they can compensate for their effects on the environment and our aging infrastructure.”

“The Ministry celebrates the Partnership’s latest success in bringing together four regional districts through an Inter-Regional Education Initiative,” stated Cairine MacDonald. “The Ministry looks forward to aligning efforts with the Partnership to further advance implementation of the ‘Beyond the Guidebook’ initiative. Collaboration across regional districts is the pathway to a consistent approach to water sustainability and green infrastructure policies and practices.”