YOU TUBE VIDEO: "Soil is more than just dirt," explained Nancy Gothard, City of Courtenay environmental planner
Towards Water-Wise Land Development in the Comox Valley
A Joint Staff Workshop hosted by the Comox Valley Regional District in December 2015 commenced the formal rollout of “A Guide to Water-Wise Land Development in the Comox Valley”.
Initiated in 2012 and completed in 2015, this guidance document was developed by the Comox Valley-CAVI Regional Team (note: CAVI is the acronym for ‘Convening for Action on Vancouver Island’).
View the YouTube video above (12 minutes) to listen to Nancy Gothard, Environmental Planner with the City of Courtenay, discuss the importance of soil to rainwater management, and how improper management of soil turns it into a problem – erosion and sediment control.
Click on Water-Wise Strategies and Tools to download a PDF copy of the PowerPoint presentation by Nancy Gothard, and follow along as she elaborates on key messages.
Selected Tools to Achieve Watershed Goals in the Comox Valley
The Water-Wise Guide identifies strategies and tools to achieve watershed goals. In her presentation, Nancy Gothard spoke about the relevance and application of both the Topsoil Bylaws Toolkit and Erosion & Sediment Control measures.
“Each regulatory tool has strengths and weaknesses and they are only as good as they are implemented, coordinated and monitored,” stated Nancy Gothard. “We each have different regulations regarding topsoil conservation and requirements for developments, and the staff who work on these items more specifically in each organization will be able to explain that to an applicant.”
“All four local governments have tools to ensure that sediment-laden runoff does not enter the community’s drainage network, including storm sewer systems, ditches and streams.”
“Sediment in the drainage system is costly to remedy and is harmful to ecosystem health, including fish habitat.”
