ASSET MANAGEMENT BC NEWSLETTER (January 2017) – Opinion: Vision for “Sustainable Watershed Systems” resonates with audiences in BC and beyond
Note to Reader:
Asset Management BC and the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia have aligned efforts to advance their shared vision for sustainable service delivery. The January 2017 issue of the Asset Management BC Newsletter included an article by the Partnership that described the impact of its awareness raising program and elaborated on several defining moments in 2016.
Looking Back: What the Partnership Accomplished in 2016
“A new way of thinking about municipal infrastructure has the attention of the local government world. Simply put, natural watershed systems are infrastructure assets – we must manage and protect them as such,” wrote Kim Stephens in the opening paragraph of the first of two companion articles published in the Winter 2017 issue of the Asset Management BC Newsletter.
Kim Stephens is the Executive Director, Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC.
“Starting in November 2015, we have introduced the Asset Management Continuum to an array of audiences in a variety of forums and media.”
“So, what were the defining moments in 2016? In August, my keynote address at a national conference in Australia provided a platform to reflect on ‘parallel journeys’. In October, publication of an op-ed in the Vancouver Sun demonstrated that our whole-system, water balance message is news worthy.”
Looking Ahead: What is on the Horizon
“In embarking on the journey to a water-resilient future, we can learn from our ancestors. The foundation for cathedral thinking is a far-reaching vision, a well thought-out blueprint, and long-term implementation,” continued Kim Stephens.
“The BC Framework links local government services, infrastructure that supports service delivery, and watershed health. Thus, it sets a strategic direction that would refocus business processes to properly manage watershed systems within the built environment.”
“By the end of 2017, success would be measured by progress on two case studies that would refine, apply and test application of the Ecological Accounting Protocol to show that: To protect watershed health, engineered infrastructure out to fit into natural systems, rather than the other way around,” concluded Kim Stephens.
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