Author Archives: Partnership for Water Sustainability

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “Few people know how important the Fraser Valley is to food security for British Columbia. The question is…does anyone care, really?” – Ted van der Gulik, President of the Partnership for Water Sustainability, and former Senior Engineer in the Ministry of Agriculture (6th installment in a preview series)
November 25, 2024 6:35 pm Comments Off on CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “Few people know how important the Fraser Valley is to food security for British Columbia. The question is…does anyone care, really?” – Ted van der Gulik, President of the Partnership for Water Sustainability, and former Senior Engineer in the Ministry of Agriculture (6th installment in a preview series)
Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on November 19, 2024 features Ted van der Gulik and his perspective on how British Columbia can achieve food security. As the former Senior Engineer in the BC Ministry of Agriculture, he was ahead of his time when he spearheaded development of the Agriculture Water Demand Model almost two decades ago. With this tool, British Columbia has been able to quantify what the province has versus what the province needs with respect to land and water for food security.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Is our food security slipping away without anyone noticing? – extracts from a conversation with Ted van der Gulik

The story behind the story is structured in four parts (topics). The bookends are about the existing Agriculture Land Reserve and a potential Agriculture Water Reserve as foundation pieces for food security. In between are high-level perspectives about a mind-set change and the pragmatic tools we now have to protect water and soil.

The spotlight in Topic One is on the food lands in the Fraser Valley because few people in British Columbia know or appreciate how important the Agriculture Land Reserve in the Fraser Valley is to food security for British Columbia. Also, that water security is key to food security.

TOPIC ONE – Agricultural Land Use Inventories reveal that, even with the ALR, we are losing our best farmland without even knowing it

“With high reliance on imported food from places like California and Mexico – and increasing risks related to those sources – British Columbia had the incredible foresight to legally protect the very limited amount of land we have that can grow food,” explains Ted van der Gulik.

“Even in 1973, Joan Sawicki reminds me, it was recognized that the ALR could only be a first step in safeguarding our food security. Joan was an original employee of the Agricultural Land Commission and has remained a strong advocate of the ALR ever since. She is also an Ambassador of the Partnership for Water Sustainability.”

“The Fraser Valley can grow a lot of the food that we need…vegetables, dairy and poultry. The fertile Fraser Valley is the best farmland in the province. But we are slowly losing our land base for growing food. And it is not because land is coming out of the Agricultural Land Reserve. Rather, it is all about what is happening on the land within the ALR.”

The ALR saved the land for farming but…

“At a time when most other jurisdictions continue to lose their food lands, BC’s Agriculture Land Reserve remains the most successful agricultural land preservation program in North America,” says Joan Sawicki.

“While the program has enjoyed generally broad public support during its 50-year history – and that in itself is amazing – we cannot afford to take it for granted or to be complacent.”

“With climate change, rising transportation costs, urbanization, land degradation and other food supply challenges, the risks associated with our reliance upon imported food are now greater than ever. Meanwhile, internally, pressures upon and within the ALR continue unabated, and may actually be increasing.”

“We need to embrace the incredible legacy that is the ALR and take the needed steps to nurture, facilitate and encourage farming within it, if we are serious about achieving food security for present and future generations of British Columbians.“

TOPIC TWO – We need to embrace a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil

“At the Asset Management BC annual conference this month, I listened to Michael Blackstock of the Gitxsan Nation deliver the keynote address,” continues Ted van der Gulik. “His claim to fame is Blue Ecology and I am proud to say that Michael Blackstock is an Ambassador of the Partnership for Water Sustainability.”

“Michael is an original thinker. He spoke to the pressing need for us to embrace what he describes as Caretaker Leadership if we are to truly protect water and soil. To quote Michael, it costs zero dollars to change your attitude.”

There is untapped Natural Intelligence in nature

“Michael explains that Blue Ecology is about creating a new form of knowledge by interweaving useful threads from our two cultures. Michael’s perspective on the need for an attitude change regarding our relationship with the land and with water resonates with me.”

“At the Asset Management BC conference, Michael introduced a new paradigm which he defines as Natural Intelligence. He talked about the need for balance through fusion of Artificial Intelligence and Natural Intelligence through Blue Ecology.”

“For British Columbia to move ahead, we all need to be on the same page. This requires trust in what the science is telling us about the changing climate and what the consequences mean for water and food security.”

“Blue Ecology reinforces the mind-set change that is necessary to support widespread use of tools and resources that the Partnership for Water Sustainability has been pioneering for more than two decades to help local governments design with nature.”

TOPIC THREE – We already have the tools to support a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil

Ted van der Gulik’s impact as an innovator extends into the urban setting. His vision for use and conservation of water and soil aligns with the Caretaker Leadership vision espoused by Michael Blackstock. He has spearheaded implementation of multiple online calculators that enable improved land and water management across sectors.

Ted has often been asked why the Ministry of Agriculture chaired the inter-governmental Water Balance Model Partnership. He would always reply by stating: “Because the water balance consequences of urbanization in the uplands are felt in the agricultural lowlands!”

Setting targets for efficient outdoor water use

Another of Ted van der Guilk’s innovations is the BC Landscape Water Calculator. It is a spinoff from the Agriculture Water Demand Model.

“Targeting seasonal outdoor water use represents the best opportunity to achieve water use in balance with a changing seasonal water cycle. Soil depth as an ‘absorbent sponge’ is a primary water management tool for climate adaptation, during both dry-weather and wet-weather periods,” explains Ted van der Gulik.

“The general populace does not appear to be accepting of what science is telling us. It is very easy to just not believe science and accept what is happening to be just temporary anomalies. The issue of climate change is a good example.”

TOPIC FOUR – The Agriculture Water Demand Model generates numbers that make the case for establishing Agriculture Water Reserves

“Preserving the best farmland is half the equation for our ensuring food security. The other half is about securing and delivering water to irrigate the food lands that we need for food security. That means quantify how much we need and what infrastructure we will require,” continues Ted van der Gulik.

“With longer and drier summers being the new reality for water management, the Agriculture Water Demand Model is a useful tool in developing water management plans to achieve food security in British Columbia. And given the accuracy of the land use inventories, we can reliably estimate the total water need for agricultural irrigation. This further means that the Province can align water allocation and water use.”

Water is life and without water, there is no food

“The Water Sustainability Act includes language for Agricultural Water Reserves. I believe this is an idea whose time has come. It is in the WSA. Now it can be triggered. But that would require political will and investment of political capital at a time when other issues are top-of-mind for our elected representatives.”

“It is also necessary to link water allocation and water licensing. Currently, there are too many users that are not licenced to take water. At the same time, we must continually strive to improve the licensing system by taking advantage of all the science as it comes along.”

Food security is still within our grasp

“Collectively what we need in British Columbia is a mind-set change to affect an attitude shift,” emphasizes Ted van der Gulik. “People need to care about what is done to land and water so that they can be protected for the benefit of everyone.”

“Without a shift in thinking, sustainable water management may never be achieved in British Columbia. We need to secure water for First Nations, environmental flow needs, food security, domestic and other needs.”

“Embracing an attitude change will be very difficult and something that cannot be led by one entity alone. Recent elections in British Columbia and the United States tell us that the populace is split 50/50 on many issues and the management of water may be similar.”

“Getting everyone on the same page will require building trust between all sectors and accepting what mainstream science is telling us. Where and how do we start, that is the big unknown,” concludes Ted van der Gulik.

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

To read the complete 3-part story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Is our food security slipping away without anyone noticing?

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/11/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Ted-van-der-Gulik-perspective-on-food-security_2024.pdf

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “Cities are all about choices – choices that become reality very quickly, with lasting consequences. Over the 21st century – the urban century – much will depend upon getting the choices right,” stated Mike Harcourt, the former Premier of British Columbia whose leadership made possible the Growth Strategies Act (5th installment in a preview series)

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Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on November 12, 2024 featured Mike Harcourt. He was premier of British Columbia from 1991 until 1996. In the interview, he talked about the cross-border collaboration that was his bigger picture context for the Georgia Basin Initiative. In turn, the GBI provides relevant context for Metro Vancouver’s Livable Region Strategic Plan, deemed to be the region’s first regional growth strategy.

Understand my regional growth strategies matter

Experience in the Metro Vancouver region over the past three decades illustrates WHY AND HOW a set of cascading factors must ALL be in alignment to sustain the livability of the Georgia Basin region. This edition features former premier Mike Harcourt. His leadership made so much possible in the 1990s.

It is not too late to use the regional growth strategies tool the way it was intended

“A key purpose of the regional growth strategies legislation our government introduced in 1995 was to enable local government to respond to housing needs,” states Mike Harcourt. He was premier of BC from 1991 through 1996.

“It provided a basis for regional districts and their member communities to support adequate, affordable, and appropriate housing in places where the necessary facilities exist or can be provided. It promoted settlement patterns that would minimize the use of automobiles and encourage transit, walking and cycling.”

“Metro Vancouver’s first regional growth strategy was the Livable Region Strategic Plan adopted in 1996.”

“Since then, this plan has provided the overall framework for the planning and development of urban centres, transit corridors, job lands and infrastructure. It has been updated twice, most recently in the form of Metro 2050, adopted in February 2023.”

“Metro 2050 seeks to expand the supply and diversity of housing. Meeting Metro Vancouver’s urgent housing demand is exactly the sort of situation for which we developed the regional growth strategies legislation. It is not too late to put this tool to use for the benefit of our current and future residents,” Mike Harcourt emphasizes.

Create Livable Communities and Protect Stream Health:
7-part series previews the Green Infrastructure Chronicle

This edition is the fifth installment in a series of seven previews leading to release of the Synopsis for Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver from 1994 through 2024. The tag-line for the Chronicle is…create livable communities and protect stream health.

EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE / CONTEXT FOR BUSY READER

“It was 2009 when I had the opportunity to get to know former premier Mike Harcourt. The opportunity arose when UBC’s Patrick Condon recruited us to be part of his Sustainability by Design Research Roundtable and I chaired the Water Group,” stated Kim Stephens, Waterbucket eNews Editor and Partnership Executive Director.

“SXD was a collaborative effort to produce a compelling representation of what the Metro Vancouver region might look like in 2050 at the neighbourhood, district, and region-wide scales. It is the only initiative of its kind.”

Nested layers – context for integrating perspectives to create livable communities

“For the past two years, I have been doing “story behind the story” interviews for the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation. With each interview, I gain more and more insight into the context surrounding my involvement in the critical first decade of the Georgia Basin Initiative (GBI).”

“When Mike Harcourt sent word to me that he was interested to chat about the history of the Georgia Basin Initiative, it opened the door to asking what inspired him to make the GBI a priority for his government. Our subsequent conversation was a revelation.”

Understand The Why

“Mike Harcourt talked about the cross-border collaboration that was his bigger picture context for the Georgia Basin Initiative. In turn, it provides context for Metro’s Livable Region Strategic Plan. This was deemed to be the region’s first regional growth strategy when Minister of Municipal Affairs Minister Darlene Marzari approved it in February 1996.”

“Cross-border collaboration, the George Basin Initiative and Livable Region Strategic Plan are nested layers for integrating planning, engineering and environmental perspectives to create livable communities! Cross-border collaboration in the 1990s with thought leaders in Washington State had a huge influence on my lived experience.”

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Understand why regional growth strategies matter – extracts from a conversation with Mike Harcourt, former premier of British Columbia

Mike Harcourt served as a Vancouver alderman from 1973 to 1980. He was Mayor of Vancouver from 1980 to 1986. As mayor, his term in office was dominated by planning for Expo 86, an event that saw many new developments come to the city. Elected premier of BC in 1991, he served until 1996.

Mike Harcourt and Ken Cameron co-authored with the late Sean Rossiter, City Making in Paradise: Nine Decisions That Saved Vancouver, published in 2007. The book details nine of the most important decisions the Vancouver region has faced since 1945.

Collaboration across boundaries begins with conversations about common interests

“The Georgia Basin Initiative had its origin in the cross-border Salish Sea Ecosystem Conferences. Beginning in the 1990s, conferences would alternate every two years or so between Vancouver and Seattle,” recalls Mike Harcourt.

“The conferences covered a whole range of growth management issues. How do we manage the number of people that are moving into the basin when we have a very tough geography where the urban space is pretty limited by the sea and the mountains, and by rivers and agricultural land and park wilderness.”

“When you take all that out, there is not a lot of land for urban development and an urban population. So, it is an area and ecosystem all on its own that deserves that kind of close attention.”

“At the end of 1986, I left the comfortable pew of the mayor’s chair in Vancouver to go into provincial politics because I wanted to change our relationship with First Nations. I figured that reconciliation was and still is the #1 issue in British Columbia. And so I wanted to deal with aboriginal rights and title and re-do the relationship.”

“It was a crazy era with the war in the woods and the fear that conservationists had of losing some key wilderness areas. When I was elected premier in 1991, I had a pretty clear set of priorities laid out in the election platform.”

“Among the priorities were: end the war in the woods; sustainable land use for cities and the natural resource areas; and land use planning processes like the Growth Strategies Act that Darlene Marzari, Joan Sawicki and I put together for the large urban areas that were fast growing,”

Georgia Basin Initiative: when the stars align anything is possible

“In 1992, I asked the BC Roundtable on the Economy and Environment to investigate the challenge of growth from a bioregional perspective. The idea for the Georgia Basin Initiative was seeded in their report titled Georgia Basin Initiative: Creating a Sustainable Future. The Roundtable findings were clear.”

Georgia Basin Initiative spawned a movement

“The 1990s was a very heady time in government in terms of land use planning and natural resource management. Because Mike Harcourt and Municipal Affairs Minister Darlene Marzari had come out of local government, they were very familiar with the urgent growth pressures and the ecological impacts that they were having,” adds Joan Sawicki.

Successor initiatives

Download Joint Statement of Cooperation on the Georgia Basin and Puget Sound Ecosystems

To learn more, visit Georgia Basin Inter-Regional Educational Initiative

Closing reflections on the passing of the intergenerational baton

“In 1991, I had some very specific things that I wanted to get done. This included dealing with the backlog of schools that needed to be built and health care facilities and transit and infrastructure that had fallen behind in the 1980s. We had a list of projects and we got them all done.”

“And when I think reflect on what we also achieved through cross-border collaboration, the good one was the park and wilderness joint commitment by BC and Washington State. Between the two governments, we put $130 million into protecting park and wilderness lands.”

Journey from then to now

“In my experience, ideas and initiatives ebb and flow. You just have to take the long view and remain committed to passing on the knowledge that comes from experience. That is why I still have the fire and am still involved. People say to me, when are you going to retire. And I reply, why would I do that?“

“Because the Partnership is the keeper of so much relevant history over the past three decades, publication of the Green Infrastructure Chronicle in 2025 will be timely. I believe people are ready to look over the tops of their foxholes and look further ahead over the horizon,” concludes Mike Harcourt.

Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver from 1994 through 2024

The Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation is a 500-page tome. Distil, distil, distil. The essence of the past three decades boils down to a table for the purposes of telling a story.

In the first installment, the theme was: Solutions to complex problems require deep knowledge. former cabinet minister Joan Sawicki and former city engineer Ray Fung reflected on their lived experience at the provincial and local scales, respectively.

In the second installment, the theme was: When an elected leader is THE CHAMPION, the community benefits. Darrell Mussatto, a respected former mayor, reflected on what it takes to be a better, more effective decision maker.

In the third installment, the theme was: Money is limited, attention spans are short, and choices must be made. Pete Steblin, a dean of city managers, reflected on why there must be trust and respect between elected leaders and their staff.

In the fourth installment, the theme was: Understand why the Livable Region Strategic Plan matters. Ken Cameron, co-architect of the plan, reflected on the importance of the fundamental principles that underlie the plan.

Table of Cascading Factors – a lesson learned is that all must be in alignment for success

Four distinct eras define the past three decades, with the period of time for each varying between 6 and 9 years. In the image below the table, a defining statement characterizes each era.

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

To download a copy of the foregoing resource as a PDF document for your records and/or sharing, click on Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Cities are all about choices.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/11/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Mike-Harcourt-on-regional-growth-strategies_2024.pdf

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION : “Local governments need a real number based on financial value if they want to get natural assets into their management plans on a regular basis. EAP gives them that,” stated Tim Pringle, Chair of the Ecological Accounting Process (EAP)

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Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on November 5, 2024 features Tim Pringle and Robert Hicks in a 4-part storyline that describes a path forward for reducing financial risk by protecting stream function in the urban setting. Tim Pringle’s methodology for the Ecological Accounting Process (EAP) closes the loop on applied research spearheaded by Robert Hicks in the late 1990s to develop the Riparian Forestry Integrity (RFI) index.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Land planning perspective for risk reduction along streams – extracted from the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver from 1994 through 2024

“Urban streams are rarely managed as ecological systems or as municipal assets. Rather, they are sliced and diced to suit land development objectives,” explains Tim Pringle.

“When we initiated EAP in 2015, it was almost intuitive to pick up on where things were after a decade of riparian area regulation, and then recognize that local governments need a number if they want to get natural assets into their management plans on a regular basis.”

“EAP finds a financial value for the streamside protection and enhancement area prescribed by RAPR. Local governments can use that number to establish plans and budgets for asset management.”

“EAP metrics and measures evaluate the condition of the target riparian zone AND assess upland areas that may be affected by a stream system.”

TOPIC ONE: A short history of stream setback regulation provides context for development of the EAP methodology for budget purposes

“The Fish Protection Act, a transformational piece of legislation which flowed from the Georgia Basin Initiative, was proclaimed in 1997. This established the authority for streamside setback regulation.”

“The Streamside Protection Regulation (SPR) operationalized the Fish Protection Act. The consultation process was then a work-in-progress from 1997 through 2000. After that, the provincial cabinet passed an Order-in-Council in January 2001 to enact SPR.”

“But in May 2001 a new provincial government was elected. Cabinet rescinded SPR as one of its early actions via an Order-in-Council, and replaced the SPR with the Riparian Areas Protection Regulation (RAPR) which became law in 2004.”

Systemic failure results in Riparian Deficits

“In Striking a Balance, an investigative series of reports published in 2014 through 2022, the Office of the Ombudsperson analyzed the impact of RAPR after a decade of the regulation being enforced.”

“The Ombudsperson’s report was a catalyst for the Partnership for Water Sustainability to undertake the program of applied research which culminated in the EAP methodology and metrics for establishing maintenance and management annual budgets for streams.”

“This finding by the Ombudsperson has financial consequences for local governments and EAP addresses those consequences. This is why we focus on the Riparian Deficit. It is a measurable consequence of the disconnect between land use oversight and direct responsibility for maintenance and management of stream condition.”

“The requirement that local governments have an Asset Management Plan addresses the disconnect. The financial focus of EAP is like a household budget; there are certain expenditures required – how much are they and where does the money come from to meet them?”

“Affordable, effective, pragmatic. EAP grounds Natural Asset Management in the real world of municipal infrastructure budgets. The EAP methodology and metrics use real numbers to make the financial case for annual investments in stream systems.”

TOPIC TWO: Why an interagency task group developed the Riparian Forest Integrity relationship to land use for the Metro region

When the Metro Vancouver region’s first Liquid Waste Management Plan (LWMP) was adopted in 2001, it established a precedent with a “streams and trees” component that was informed by science.

Streams were degrading

“This component was the work of the Stormwater Management Technical Advisory Task Group. Established in 1997, the Task Group was interagency in scope and had federal, provincial and local representation,” states Robert Hicks, former senior engineer with Metro Vancouver who was staff support for the group.

“It was clear to the Task Group that engineering solutions alone would not result in good stormwater management and environmental protection, nor address regulatory infraction risk.”

“At the time, the 1992 Land Development Guidelines were in effect. Produced by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), they were about doing business differently. It was a best attempt at the time.”

Riparian forest integrity is a pillar of stream protection

“The federal and provincial representatives advocated for a new business as usual regarding downstream flooding of agricultural lands and fish habitat preservation.”

“The priorities were hydrology and riparian forest canopy which is why we involved Rich Horner of the University of Washington in our watershed assessment and classification work in the late 1990s.”

“The research team developed and tested the RFI classification system using 19 streams that were representative of physiography and land development patterns in the Metro Vancouver region. In 1999, the majority of streams were in the FAIR and POOR categories.”

TOPIC THREE: Watershed Health Rating System applied the lessons from Puget Sound research and did projections to the Year 2036

“We worked with Rich Horner and an expert team to build on Puget Sound research and develop a watershed health rating system for our region. A trend projection from 1996 to 2036 demonstrated how the status quo would lead to a further region-wide decline in stream health,” explains Robert Hicks.

“The classification system relied on two parameters, total impervious area (TIA) and percentage of riparian forest integrity (RFI). We had our GIS techs count the trees within riparian corridors from air photos. We found a correlation between population density and TIA.”

“When we showed the picture of the RFI versus TIA relationship to the Board members, they agreed that things had to change. Things will get worse if we do not change our ways.”

The picture tells a story. RED denotes POOR and ORANGE denotes FAIR.

A missed opportunity

“The Metro research team anticipated that local governments would incorporate these assessment measures into planning strategies, development approval processes, and engineering standards with the goal of avoiding degradation of small watersheds and streams,” observes Tim Pringle.

TOPIC FOUR: Predictive tool for making the financial case at a regional scale for investing in annual maintenance of stream systems

“In the late 1990s, the science which connected land use alterations of water pathways and riparian environments opened the eyes of levels of government and stewardship interests,” continues Tim Pringle.

“The region can move to a restored and renewed leadership position by revisiting the 1999 research and updating the analyses. This would be achieved through Metro participation in the next evolution of the EAP Partnership in 2025.”

The spatial approach using land parcels makes sense to local governments

“We are taking a spatial approach. We deal with parcels which is as spatial as you can get. We need readers to understand that in order for EAP to be real to them. Both the Metro research in the late 1990s and the current EAP research are spatial analyses and they look at several variables.”

“We have a two-step plan. Step One is an update that would add the EAP dimension to the analyses. This would demonstrate how to make the financial case for action in at-risk watersheds. This would provide Metro municipalities with a starting point that is science-based and pragmatic, affordable and effective, and is easy to grasp.”

“The predictive tool would make it possible for municipalities to quantify the financial implications of increased development density, including provincial housing policies, for the RIPARIAN DEFICIT.”

Sam Gerrand completed the first master’s EAP thesis

“In my thesis, I looked at ways to simplify the process for moving EAP to the regional scale and lower the boundaries to entry on different types of projects,” states Sam Gerrand, a graduate in the Master of Community Planning program at Vancouver Island University.

“In his thesis, Sam took advantage of the spatial approach to analysis. He saw the potential to extract rules of thumb about the spatial analysis that tell us why we get a certain EAP value when we do a stream valuation,” adds Tim Pringle.

“Once the EAP Partnership completes additional case studies in the Metro region to supplement the 14 already completed or underway, then we will have enough information about the metrics and measures to to glean helpful rules of thumb. This shorthand would be most helpful to community planners,” concludes Tim Pringle.

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

To read the complete 3-part story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Land planning perspective for liability reduction along streams.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Tim-Pringle_risk-reduction-along-streams_2024.pdf

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “There is no question that we have come a long way in overcoming memory loss in regional growth management and the future looks promising,” stated Ken Cameron, co-architect of Metro Vancouver’s Livable Region Strategic Plan in the 1990s (4th installment in a preview series)

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Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on October 29 2024 features Ken Cameron, a co-author of Metro Vancouver’s Livable Region Strategic Plan. Through his telling of firsthand historical vignettes, he provides insight into why the plan matters, and why we need people who are interested enough to understand the state of mind that lay behind its success.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Think about this because it helps to understand why the Livable Region Strategic Plan matters – extracts from a conversation with Ken Cameron

Ken Cameron is a native of Vancouver whose professional career began in Ontario, There, he worked for the provincial government for seven years. “At that time Ontario had a lot of interest in planning and management of watersheds and water resources,” recalls Ken Cameron.

In 1978, Ken Cameron had a chance to come back to BC after the retirement of Harry Lash, the legendary and brilliant planner opened up the Senior Associate Planner position at the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD).

Through the 1980s and 1990s and into the 2000s, Ken Cameron was at the epicentre of the people and successive processes that built on Harry Lash’s early innovation and legacy and thus made possible Metro Vancouver’s Livable Region Strategic Plan.

Asking the question, ***what is bothering you?*, resulted in the Livable Region Proposals (1976)**

“When the GVRD was established in 1967, they inherited an official regional plan from the Lower Mainland Regional Planning Board. But they did not quite know what to do with it,” explains Ken Cameron in providing historical context.

“And they found it really did not fit with a lot of things on people’s minds which they learned about when Harry Lash went out and said, what is bothering you?. He undertook a comprehensive, citizen-based planning consultation and worked the answers into what became the Livable Region Proposals.”

“After I joined the GVRD, I began to realize that some of the qualities of the region that I had grown up with and taken for granted were pretty special. Protection and enhancement of these qualities was incorporated into the Livable Region Proposals and the updated the Official Regional Plan for the Lower Mainland.”

In 1983, the Province of BC cancelled all Official Regional Plans but could not cancel what was un-cancellable

“In the early 1980s, controversy erupted after the provincial government removed the Spetifore lands in Delta from the Agricultural Land Reserve and the GVRD Board refused to amend the Official Regional Plan to reflect that, in effect overruling the Cabinet. In response, the provincial government removed the regional planning function from all regional districts.”

“One of the things that was un-cancellable was the Livable Region Proposals because they never had an official existence and were never the subject of a board motion. They could not be cancelled by a provincial action. With reduced funding and staff, we tried to salvage what was important from the corpse of the regional planning mandate.”

Livable Region Proposals were founded on sophisticated knowledge of the region:

“What was important when you took away all the legal stuff was a plan that was based on shard knowledge and public participation. It depended on voluntary cooperation among and between the municipalities, and between the municipalities and the region.”

“It had that spirit to it that had been internalized in the guts of the municipal planners at the time. It was based on knowledge and on what Harry Lash had put together. This was a very sophisticated basis of knowledge of what was going on in the region.”

“It is people. It is economy. All that stuff was still there because it could not be cancelled…provided we could find a way of paying for it. That was the key part. When the GVRD board representatives met with Rita Johnston, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, and said there is still a need for regional planning in Metro Vancouver, her response showed us the only feasible path forward.”

The region found a bottom-up way to carry on with voluntary regional planning

“It was a challenge but we were able to do that. We set up a 16-party agreement under which most of the work of the regional district could be carried on and paid for by municipalities out of their own budgets.”

“Until then, the regional planning function had been paid out of a regional levy. So councils and municipal planners did not see it as a takeaway from their budgets. It was just a bill that came in and they included it in the levy for regional services that they sent to taxpayers.”

“It was an uphill battle. The city managers were money conscious people and were all over it. It was not a positive environment in which to do innovative planning. It was a fundamentally unstable arrangement, but it did keep the doors open and lights on for five years.”

In 1987, a renewed commitment to rebuild the regional planning function from the ground up led to Creating Our Future

“In the middle of that period of instability, I left the GVRD and joined the City of New Westminster as their city planner.”

“Michael O’Connor asked Gordon Campbell who was then Mayor of Vancouver to chair the Strategic Planning Committee even though we had no authority to bring politicians to meetings pr to pay them for being there. IT WAS ENTIRELY VOLUNTARY.”

“It was an opportunity to rebuild a regional planning function from the ground up. It was based on principles that were established in the 1960s…of cooperation, of participation, of progress through agreement rather than through legislation, of planning as a tool of the people rather than as a tool of the government.”

“There was a whole group of people in Vancouver City Hall…Gordon Campbell, Walter Hardwick, Darlene Marzari, Gordon Price…who thought that the City of Vancouver’s future and interest were inextricably bound up with the future of the region. That was just another way of thinking about the future of the city that they loved and led.”

“That regional view led to a process called Choosing Our Future. This was a broad consultation process that led to a document called Creating Our Future. It had Gordon Campbell’s fingerprints all over it.”

In 1990, an action plan provided a regional framework for maintaining and enhancing the livability of Metro Vancouver

“Between January and June 1990, Creating Our Future produced some really important basic ideas, like environmental management and stewardship of water – defined by this statement: “The purpose of Greater Vancouver’s watersheds is to produce, clean, safe water”.”

“And also a transportation system that put walking, cycling, goods movement and transit ahead of the private use of the private automobile.”

A process of voluntary cooperation

“Creating Our Future was a very good overall vision. I went to the municipalities with it. And the municipal planners said…Ken, this is a great vision, a wonderful statement, and we are all in agreement with it…BUT IT IS NOT A PLAN.”

“So, we started on a process of voluntary cooperation to create this plan. We had no authority for it. And it was driven by the municipalities. That led to the Livable Region Strategic Plan ultimately. The basic principles were adopted by consensus…which I define as the absence of expressed dissent.”

In 1996, the Minister of Municipal Affairs’ approval of the regional growth strategy was a defining moment in the history of the region

“A Helijet flight to Victoria is the story behind the story of how BC’s Growth Strategies Act came to be. (Municipal Affairs Minister) Darlene Marzari sat next to me in the only vacant seat. She said, Ken, we have to talk. I have a staff and you have a board. We have to find a way of working around that.”

“So, I met with her on a Saturday morning and made a presentation about the draft Livable Region Strategic Plan to an audience of one. No advisors. At the end of the presentation, she said “I want to do that. I want to make that possible”. About that time, the provincial government was beginning to talk about growth strategies and Erik Karlsen was beginning to get involved.”

Erik Karlsen led a province-wide consultation process

“Darlene Marzari realized that she needed a champion within the Ministry for this initiative. And that person was Erik Karlsen. She had strong, very strong opinions about what kind of legislation this should be.”

“It was fortunate that Metro Vancouver had a plan that was ready to go just at the time Darlene Marzari was inventing the mandate for it. So the Livable Region Strategic Plan was the first regional growth strategy adopted under the Growth Strategies Act. Darlene Marzari signed the plan as minister, deeming it to have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Growth Strategies Act.”

“In summary, it was a reconstruction from first principles, leaving behind the stuff that was getting in the way, bringing in the stuff that was new…including the comprehensive approach and the idea that the resources of the region should be managed in accordance with regional and municipal planning objectives. All of that was put in place in a brand-new form.”

Ben Marr believed that integrated planning is the key to managing BC’s settlements and their resources

“During that entire period from 1990 through 1996, Ben Marr was a terrific supporter of us behind the scenes. He never had to be out front. I think he believed in his soul that integrated planning is the key to managing BC’s settlements and their resources.”

“His contribution to the Livable Region Strategic Plan process was to follow his management philosophy….which is…if you have managers, let them manage and do what they have to do. Let them know if there is anything that is bothering you. But until that happens, let them do what they do best.”

“That in turn set the stage for the negotiation of ground-breaking new transportation governance and funding relationships that we now know as TransLink.”

Adopted by the Regional District Board in January and approved by the Minister in February

When Johnny Carline succeeded Ben Marr as CAO, he discovered sustainability as the focus for government and the region

“Johnny Carline took over as CAO in 1996. He developed a concept for how to provide integrated planning for the region and its functions and restructured the regional planning, the water, sewage and solid waste utilities and the air quality function into three divisions: Policy and Planning; Engineering and Construction; Operations and Maintenance.”

“The first question to be answered was does the board want or have to do in each of these areas. That meant production of plans which had to consider whether there was a way to meet needs by managing demand rather than building new facilities.”

“That is how I came to have responsibility as manager of policy and planning for plans for liquid waste management including the requirement that the municipalities develop Integrated Stormwater Management Plans under the LWMP. There were other plans for water supply, watershed management, solid waste management and air quality management.”

Dr. Louise Comeau of FCM opened eyes and minds to climate change

“Johnny Carline’s next epiphany occurred when we were at a Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference about sustainable development. He got religion, as they say, He had discovered sustainability as the focus for government for managing not only the environment but also the social and economic future. Johnny Carline got it.”

“This evolution reflected the influence of Louise Comeau, the FCM policy and program director responsible for the Partners for Climate Protection program and for establishing the Green Municipal Fund.”

It is about the life support system for the region

Closing thoughts on why the Metro Vancouver Regional Livability Strategic Plan still matters

“When I was manager of policy and planning, I would tell my staff that we have been put in charge of the planning for the life support system for this region. We cannot own it but we can leave it to our children. And to build a better place, we need people who understand the state of mind that lay behind the success of the Livable Region Strategic Plan.”

“In this integrated role which included both regional planning and engineering planning, I developed a new appreciation for engineers who are people of responsibility and vision, have incredible technical skill, and very good people skills. People who I worked with in Metro Vancouver were incredibly inspiring to work with.”

Metro 2050 – Regional Growth Strategy

“In February 2023, the Metro Vancouver Board adopted Metro 2050, which has all the components of an effective regional growth strategy:

Integration of regional and municipal land-use plans.
Integration with regional utility and environmental management plans.
Formal transportation policy direction for TransLink.”

Implications of provincial housing policy for livability

“Metro 2050 also provides a clear framework for federal and provincial policies to plug into and support broadly held regional objectives. Metro 2050 offered a golden opportunity for new federal and provincial housing programs and funding to be delivered in a well-established regional context.”

“Unfortunately, the provincial government bypassed that opportunity to use their own legislation and instead went with a series of arbitrary overrides of local government planning authority, which has created chaos and disruption,” concludes Ken Cameron.

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

To download a copy of the foregoing resource as a PDF document for your records and/or sharing, click on Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Understand why the Livable Region Strategic Plan matters.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Ken-Cameron_reflections-on-Livable-Region-Strategic-Plan_2024.pdf

EAP TRANSITION STRATEGY PARTNERSHIP: “If we apply EAP to land owned by the RDN to help prove that Natural Asset Management is meaningful, then I see that as the trigger to influence other owners of land to behave in a similar fashion,” stated Murray Walters, Manager of Water Services with the Regional District of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island

October 22, 2024 7:00 am Comments Off

Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on October 22, 2024 is the second installment in a 4-part series that showcases a successful precedent to pass the intergenerational baton and build long-term capacity within local government to implement Natural Asset Management.

Anna Lawrence, project coordinator for the EAP Transition Strategy Partnership is the guest editor for a conversation with Murray Walters, Manager of Water Services, about the Regional District of Nanaimo’s experience in advancing EAP.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Reflections on the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University – extracts from a conversation with Murray Walters about the Regional District of Nanaimo experience

At the midway mark in the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University, Anna Lawrence and Murray Walters had a conversation to take stock of the journey. A set of four questions provided a framework for reflections by Murray Walters.

Why is the Regional District of Nanaimo all-in with its 3-year commitment to the EAP Partnership? Midway through, how does Murray Walters describe his view of the journey to date?

THREAD ONE: Why the RDN is all-in with its commitment to the EAP Partnership

“The RDN is all-in for three reasons,” stated Murray Walters. “Obviously our Drinking Water and Watershed Protection Program is really interested in initiatives like EAP as it pertains to watershed protection. That is the first link.”

“Secondly, beyond that is how the EAP initiative relates to MABRRI and Vancouver Island University. Anytime within the context of the DWWP program that we have an opportunity to help promote moving something like this from a volunteer group into an academic world is a good thing. And doing this also supports the goals of DWWP.”

“So, not only is it what the Partnership and MABRRI are trying to do, the way you are doing it is a good fit. Then EAP can be seen and developed by a lot more people…and potentially get more profile.”

“The third reason is that we really are in the early days of trying to understand what Natural Asset Management looks like. We learned a whole bunch from the Millstone River EAP study that was a joint effort with the City of Nanaimo in 2020.”

“The EAP project opened our eyes to how much money is being spent on the Millstone system, particularly within the city and less so in the RDN reaches.”

A way forward is starting to crystallize

“As an organization we are moving forward with trying to identify where we have natural assets that provide…shall we say infrastructure service. That is what DWWP and the Long Range Planning folks have agreed to do through a collaborative approach.”

“We will identify a few areas where we could potentially do something on land we own, most likely in a park. We are going to try and establish what the contribution is…as an asset. Then we can connect the dots to the financial requirements for managing that asset.”

THREAD TWO: Why the RDN selected French Creek as its 2nd EAP project

“The RDN has completed a natural assets inventory which identifies where we think all the natural assets are within the region. But we have not identified which of them have a definable service.”

“What we are hoping with French Creek is that we can identify some of those peripheral areas within French Creek, generate some M&M figures, and merge the inventory and asset management approaches. A measure of convergence is when you have a real number that you can use for pragmatic planning.”

“Mosaic owns it. And we cannot ask Mosaic to do this or that because their mandate is not to provide infrastructure services for the public good. Their mandate is to make money off forestry. This example illustrates some of the challenges that we face.”

Governance in an electoral area of a regional district

“Another good reason why we chose French Creek is to shine another light on some of the difficulties surrounding governance in electoral areas outside the municipal boundaries.”

“French Creek is such a mess because there are large unincorporated areas of development and private ownership in the middle and upper watershed that converge on the very densely populated Oceanside. Road drainage is a major contributor to problems that are being experienced.”

“Governance is not the primary goal of the EAP study. But when you look at what we are going to get with EAP…and consider how it fits into the ongoing governance studies that are happening in that electoral area…well, I anticipate it is going to be a really helpful piece of information.”

THREAD THREE: How the RDN will use what they have learned from French Creek

“Natural asset management is in its infancy. SO WE ARE REALLY FOCUSING ON LAND THAT WE OWN. You look at something like Hamilton Marsh and it is very visible and it is very obvious that it provides a service. But we lack the ability to influence what goes on there.”

“As an organization we need to focus on land that we own to prove the concept more than anything. Maybe there is an element of timing in there where we can identify an asset that we do own…and that will allow the natural asset inventory and asset management to come together a little bit better.”

“If we can do something on our land to prove the concept, get it accepted by our board of directors, then maybe that is the trigger to try and influence other people who also have land to behave in a similar fashion. That is the direction where I see natural asset management going.”

The DWWP function made it possible to advance EAP

“The fact that we have the DWWP function here at the RDN is what allows us to participate so wholesomely in this kind of innovative partnership with other organizations and move the whole idea of Natural Asset Management forward.”

“It is really a function of having a group of funded, enthusiastic, creative thinking people who can see where this is going in the long term. A couple of years ago, when we were doing the Millstone EAP project, it was a bit of a hobby and we were not quite sure what we were going to use it for. Well, it is four years later and we are significantly advanced from those early days.”

Collaboration leverages science to inform policy

“To move away from the science, data and community outreach stuff…and into policy and planning…the two groups have to work really closely together. Many of the long-range planning initiatives refer to partnerships with DWMP and moving our collaboration forward.”

“You have to de-silo. You cannot operate in silos where everyone is trying to grab more turf all the time. You need to operate in an environment where people are not afraid to go talk and tell you what they are doing and what they want to help with.”

“We cannot always help them and they cannot always help us either. But we are talking about it these days. Internal collaboration does not happen overnight. You must have initial successes to build relationships. That is what the French Creek EAP project represents. It will feed into other studies,” concludes Murray Walters.

To Learn More:

To read the complete story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Reflections on the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University – Regional District of Nanaimo experience.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Murray-Walters-reflections-on-EAP-Partnership_2024.pdf

EAP TRANSITION STRATEGY PARTNERSHIP: “The City of Nanaimo is all-in for EAP, the Ecological Accounting Process. When the EAP Partnership idea came up, the most attractive element was the ability to pass on the torch,” stated Bill Sims, General Manager of Engineering and Public Works

October 15, 2024 7:00 am Comments Off

Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on October 15, 2024 is the first installment in a 4-part series that showcases a successful precedent to pass the intergenerational baton and build long-term capacity within local government to implement Natural Asset Management.

Anna Lawrence, project coordinator for the EAP Transition Strategy Partnership is the guest editor for a conversation with Bill Sims, general manager of engineering, about the City of Nanaimo’s experience in advancing EAP.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Reflections on the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University – extracts from a conversation with Bill Sims about the City of Nanaimo experience

At the midway mark in the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University, Anna Lawrence and Bill Sims had a conversation to take stock of the journey. A set of four questions provided a framework for reflections by Bill Sims.

Why is the City of Nanaimo all-in with its 3-year commitment to the EAP Partnership? Midway through, how does Bill Sims describe his view of the journey to date? What was in his mind when the City selected Departure Creek as the 1st case study? How will City staff use what they have learned?

THREAD ONE: Why the City of Nanaimo is all-in with its commitment to the EAP Partnership

“Moving forward with natural asset management is one of the key drivers for Nanaimo. This is why the City is all-in for EAP, the Ecological Accounting Process. This is one way to getting an inventory happening. Most importantly, we saw the EAP Partnership as a timely opportunity to leverage collaboration with other local governments,” explains Bill Sims.

“We hire consultants oftentimes out of necessity because we simply do not have capacity, expertise or time in-house. When the EAP Partnership idea came up, the most attractive element was the ability to pass on the torch to the next generation of local government staff without losing the experience and knowledge that we have intrinsically built up.”

Storytelling and oral history is a foundation piece for Natural Asset Management

“We talk a lot about the need for oral history and stories. This partnership, this collaboration, has the opportunity to enshrine it and perpetuate the acquisition and evolution of knowledge around natural assets.”

“That is what I immediately really liked about the whole idea of the EAP Partnership. And then setting it up within the research chair at MABRRI gave it that sense of permanence. You knew it was going to be safe. We could entrust it there.”

Pass on knowledge and evolve understanding:

“If I retire tomorrow and my successor does not pick up the torch, then the EAP Partnership fizzles from my point of view But it will not fizzle if this program starts to perpetuate. Doing singular projects is all well and good. When we do one and then put it down, however, time passes and memories fade. But turning it more into a program makes it habitual.”

“That is the other thing. as I see it. We are always evolving. Our knowledge and understanding is always evolving. So embedding EAP in a institution like VIU is an opportunity for the EAP Partnership to take whatever knowledge the City of Nanaimo might have and then expand it and evolve it and improve upon it.”

THREAD TWO: Why the City of Nanaimo selected Departure Creek as its 1st EAP project

“Departure Creek has had intensive attention, not only from the stewardship group but also from the City in terms of infrastructure or environmental improvements over time.”

“And we have observed that the Departure Bay Neighbourhood Association, not just the stewardship group, has a history of being a very engaged and active neighbourhood association. So, the people of that neighbourhood are engaged in community-building. This is really quite gratifying for me to see as a manager at the City.”

“Departure Creek is also one of the very few creeks on the east coast of Vancouver Island that does not dry up. There obviously some value, there is a salmon return frequently. There has been encroachment on the creek. There has also been riparian repair along the creek.”

THREAD THREE: How the City of Nanaimo will use what they have learned from Departure Creek

“Halfway through, it is quite exciting to see how the research work is unfolding. You would not have predicted this 1½ or 2 years ago when we started. What we are learning is so much bigger than just saying we are going to do this research project, come up with a number, and away we go. It is going way beyond that simple way of looking at things.”

Affordable, effective, pragmatic and entrenched

“Nanaimo is a local government trying to do more with less. If I have a number that I can apply to all the creeks in my municipality to get me started, it is really exciting. The project management by Anna and Graham has been really instrumental in helping the project move along.”

“Sustaining anything is really challenging. To keep this going is the goal and I see that happening. It is kind of exciting, quite honestly! Pulling Metro Vancouver into the EAP Partnership is going to strengthen the legs under it.”

“In the background, we are having our conversations about asset management in general. Conversations about how we keep it going for gray infrastructure and bring in natural assets. Our parks group is doing land inventories. All of this can be presented as a package.”

“The EAP program is embedded in our Integrated Action Plan. This supports City Plan: Nanaimo Reimagined which is the City’s strategic planning document. It provides direction for the coming 25 years on everything…land use, transportation, climate adaptation, etc. We made sure EAP is part of that. It is firmly rooted.”

EAP provides a starting point for action

“That in some ways short cuts the journey we would probably want to take. Departure Creek will go into our inventory. After Wexford Creek is done, we will have another inventory. And if the Natural Capital Asset financial values per lineal metre of stream length are within 10, 15, 20% of each other, we are going to say – hey, this is close enough.”

“That exercise will then form part of our Asset Management Plan and our natural asset inventory. As I have said many times…it may not be perfect but it is something. It is a starting point.”

Understand WHY we are making the financial case for investment in streams

“From there, we can start to demonstrate that the creeks in Nanaimo have a value of X millions of dollars. We really should be investing in their maintenance and management. By being pragmatic and making the financial case using real numbers, we answer the question of why we should be investing,” concludes Bill Sims.

To Learn More:

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Darrell-Mussatto_reflections-by-an-elected-leaders_2024.pdf

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “When I reflect on how the memory loss issue is playing out, top of mind for me is that every area of local government needs a champion,” stated Pete Steblin, former City Manager in the Metro Vancouver region, when he reflected on how the past informs the future (3rd installment of a preview series)
October 8, 2024 8:00 am Comments Off on CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “When I reflect on how the memory loss issue is playing out, top of mind for me is that every area of local government needs a champion,” stated Pete Steblin, former City Manager in the Metro Vancouver region, when he reflected on how the past informs the future (3rd installment of a preview series)
Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on October 8^th 2024 featured Pete Steblin, a retired city manager who is a dean of chief administrative officers in the Metro Vancouver region. In his story behind the story, he draws on experience in resolving Council-Staff conflict and building a culture of collaboration.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Money is limited, attention spans are short, and choices must be made – extracts from a conversation with Pete Steblin

When Pete Steblin joined the City of Coquitlam in 2008, his first task was to resolve Staff-Council conflict and stabilize a very difficult situation. “It was a giant hornet nest that I had to resolve if we were to rebuild trust and move forward,” he recalls. This experience provides context for his reflections in this story behind the story. His reflections are presented as three theme areas.

“There was a dark period yet that is what makes the Coquitlam story authentic and helped us to develop approaches which balance idealism with pragmatism. Others can learn from that experience and know that it is okay to stumbles,” Pete Steblin adds.

“When I arrived, a number of councillors wanted me to blow the place up but I came up with the analogy of a chair. It is somewhat stable if you take one leg out but will totally collapse if you take out more than one. So I said to Council, allow me to take one leg out and fix it and after that I will address the other legs one by one.”

“They accepted that and I started changing the organization one division at a time through a series of cyclical reviews. We conducted over a dozen in those first few years and it fundamentally changed and improved the organization. When Council saw the results, trust improved!”

THEME AREA ONE: Local governments are much like a crucible where competing issues must be balanced to produce affordable and effective outcomes

“When I reflect on the Green Infrastructure Chronicle and how the memory loss issue is playing out, top of mind for me is that every area of local government needs a champion. When there is no champion, that area gets left in the dust,” bluntly states Pete Steblin.

“Of course every champion does need to put forward a compelling case for their area. At the end of the day, however, there just are not enough resources in an ongoing way to deal with all the issues. So, choices are made between competing issues and competing champions.”

Changes in direction and unintended consequences

“In discussions about issues of the day, what I see missing at times is an understanding of the linkages within a local government system. It is easy to forget there are other needs that have to be considered and balanced.”

“And when we lose our way on a specific issue, as has happened with the Livable Region Plan, it is because some other champion in some other area got the air waves and got the attention of the politicians. It explains why an abrupt change in direction can result in unintended consequences.”

“The time that politicians can spend on any one issue is short. And so whoever makes that compelling case in the moment for their issue…well, all of a sudden the priorities of a local government are different. Housing has come to the fore again, partially because the Province has made it so.”

THEME AREA TWO: Local governments are also much like the Mars Rover in terms of how they can change direction abruptly and unexpectedly

“It is important for each generation to learn to look back to see ahead so that they can turn rather than reinvent the wheel. At the same time, we need to think of local government as being more like a Mars Rover with wheels that can move in different directions.”

“Wheels are good to go in one direction. You need a steering wheel. But you need something different to change direction….AND DIRECTION IS GOING TO BE CHANGED…as you go forward. You have to at least recognize that reality so that you can adapt to it.”

Arrive at balanced solutions

“And then as the champion you have to keep momentum going for your area. You have to plug away in support of your area because if you do not, it gets wholly lost in the dust. But while you are doing that, I always think it is nice when people at least recognize that there are other areas and other champions.”

“When I would meet with my department heads, for example, I would encourage them to put on a different hat. Put your corporate hat on, I would ask, and help me make those value judgements.”

“And can you please moderate a little bit or can you accept a little bit less this year but keep the needs flowing so that we revisit them next year. Something along those lines is what I would urge them.”

THEME AREA THREE: What organizational amnesia looks like and how local governments can overcome it

“When I reflect on the organizational amnesia that I am currently observing in local government, the word FEAR comes into my mind, although it is not said out loud. You hear the term CAO roadkill at lot. With the high turnover at the top, and the exodus of experienced people, the situation is fragile.”

“Yet there is a reluctance to ask for help from those with experience, knowledge and… yes, wisdom. In fact, there seems to be a fear of independent advice unless it is totally supportive of the direction that the people at the top want to go in. And so they would rather shut it down.”

“In my experience, it is more helpful when the people in charge are at least open to and encourage other viewpoints and then say…on balance, I recommend that…But that is not the way government is being administered at the present time.”

A call for affordable and effective solutions

“My career in local government began in era when money was really tight and we had to fight so hard for every nickel. Today so much money is wasted. Yet we could have got 90% of the benefits for a lot less money. We have been going for perfection and spending ten times what is absolutely necessary.”

“We have to return to the ethic of solutions being affordable and effective. Otherwise, a seismic shift will occur in local government because of overall politics. The mood in society has changed and blunt instruments are going to come down. That is my fear.”

“Now more than ever communities need to learn from past experience. And society needs balanced perspectives and alternate viewpoints. Give voices to other perspectives. And then whatever the decision is, at least those viewpoints were part of the consideration,” concludes Pete Steblin.

To Learn More:

To read the complete story featuring Pete Steblin, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Money is limited, attention spans are short, and choices must be made

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Pete-Steblin-city-manager-perspective_2024.pdf
EAP TRANSITION STRATEGY PARTNERSHIP: “There are lots of partnerships that exist for selfish reasons. But the EAP Partnership is selfless; and from all angles. The strategy ensures that knowledge is retained at an institutional level, that is, Vancouver Island University,” stated Graham Sakaki, Manager of the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute
October 7, 2024 9:42 am Comments Off on EAP TRANSITION STRATEGY PARTNERSHIP: “There are lots of partnerships that exist for selfish reasons. But the EAP Partnership is selfless; and from all angles. The strategy ensures that knowledge is retained at an institutional level, that is, Vancouver Island University,” stated Graham Sakaki, Manager of the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute
Note to Reader:

Supported financially by the Union of BC Municipalities, three Vancouver Island local governments are founding members of the EAP Partnership which also includes the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute (MABRRI), Vancouver Island University and the Partnership for Water Sustainability.

The vision is that the partnership will evolve into an EAP centre-of-excellence at VIU. In 2022, the partners committed to a 3-year transition strategy to embed EAP in MABRRI by doing three EAP projects each per year. This unique partnership is pioneering a pragmatic path forward for Natural Asset Management within the local government setting.

Affordable, effective and pragmatic Natural Asset Management

“A theme dominating the news these days is the shortage of skilled, trained or qualified people. Investing in people takes patience, commitment and time. There is no shortcut to build in-house capacity,” wrote Kim Stephens, Executive Director of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC, in the Summer 2023 issue of the Asset Management BC Newsletter.

The article is an interview with Graham Sakaki of the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Research Institute (MABRRI) at Vancouver Island University. The Partnership is handing the baton to MABRRI to be the home for the Ecological Accounting Process (EAP).

“The City of Nanaimo, Municipality of North Cowichan, and Regional District of Nanaimo have taken the leap of faith to invest in youth at Vancouver Island University. The mission is to develop next generations of local government staffs so that they have the knowledge and understanding to apply EAP, the Ecological Accounting Process to land use processes.”

“And the Partnership for Water Sustainability is passing the EAP baton to the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Research Institute (MABRRI) at Vancouver Island University to be the knowledge keeper. EAP will be embedded in MABRRI.”

Story behind the story

“The story behind the story is about the importance of embedding knowledge of EAP into the youth who are going to be the future of our local governments. The framework that we have set up ensures this will happen,” stated Graham Sakaki, MABRRI Manager.

“There are lots of partnerships that exist for selfish reasons. But the EAP Partnership is selfless, and from all angles. It is a leap of faith for member local governments. Partnership for Water Sustainability commitment to passing the baton is unwavering.”

To Learn More:

To read the complete article, download the Summer 2023 issue of the Asset Management BC Newsletter.
CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “When elected leaders have a trust-based relationship with their senior staff, and everyone works together to make the community a better place, that is when you really get things moving in the right direction,” stated former North Vancouver City mayor Darrell Mussatto when he reflected on how the past informs the future (2nd installment of a preview series)
October 1, 2024 7:00 am Comments Off on CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “When elected leaders have a trust-based relationship with their senior staff, and everyone works together to make the community a better place, that is when you really get things moving in the right direction,” stated former North Vancouver City mayor Darrell Mussatto when he reflected on how the past informs the future (2nd installment of a preview series)
Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on October 1, 2024 features reflections by former North Vancouver City Mayor Darrell Mussatto. This is the third instalment in a series of reflections that preview the SYNOPSIS for the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver (1994-2024). The release date for the Synopsis is November 2024.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: When an elected leader is THE CHAMPION, the community benefits – extracts from a conversation with Darrell Mussatto

When I interviewed Darrell Mussatto, five threads emerged from our conversation. And then it struck me that those threads define a set of five principles to guide the actions of elected leaders. And that is exactly how they are presented in this story behind the story.

The vignettes and insights shared by Darrell Mussatto underscore the wisdom in learning to look back to see ahead. As Darrell illustrates, it is the only way to avoid unintended consequences when we don’t know what we don’t know. Darrell makes the case for restoring trust and respect in local government and making informed decisions.

PRINCIPLE #1: When there is trust and respect between politicians and staff, good outcomes for the community are more likely to result

“My goal when I was elected mayor in 2005 was all about climate change. After the first month, I organized a meeting with the top 40 staff to share my vision. Part way through my presentation, some staff put their hands up and said…Darrell, we are there with you, we are there.”

“It was an aha moment. I did not have to convince them. Wow, we are in this together, I realized. How can we work together to make this a more sustainable community, they asked. This is not just about climate change, they said. The real issue is how we treat our environment, they explained.”

“When staff do not feel intimidated, they can be bolder. When elected leaders have a trust-based relationship with their senior staff, and everyone works together to make the community a better place, that is when you really get things moving in the right direction.”

PRINCIPLE #2: Become educated about how local government works, and make informed policy decisions that improve quality of life

“It would be a bonus if people came into elected office with background on what matters to the operation of a local government. But most will not have a clue. Especially when it comes to infrastructure. That is why they need to educate themselves about how to develop informed policies.”

“But what I am see as being prevalent right now is populism: Find out where the people are going so that I can lead them there. Or, what is it they want and I will deliver it to them. Or, I am the boss and have the majority on council so I am going to do things the way I want. That is not leadership. Be informed. Become educated. Politics is about giving back.”

“We need people who get involved in politics for the right reasons. And are willing to put time into learning about infrastructure and all the other things that make local government work for the greater good.”

“To aspiring elected leaders, I say tell me what your passions are. Tell me what you see needing improvement. Tell me what you would do to make the built environment more sustainable. Tell me where you see the city and region going and what the priorities should be to make this a better place.”

PRINCIPLE #3: Support community-minded people who step up for the right reasons because they believe in a livable region

“A reality is that no one is at high speed all the time. There will always be peaks and valleys. Some municipalities go through valleys after they have been at peaks. But then with good people in leadership roles they do come back.”

“It can take a decade or longer to build a culture of trust and respect. And then it can be undone within a year. We see examples of that around the region. More than ever, we need good people putting their names forward.”

“And we need community leaders who say what is best for the community. You cannot always tell people what they want to hear. Sometimes you have to tell them the tougher news. I do hope those leaders emerge because we need them more than ever.”

“I believe those people who want to give back are out there. Every once and a while you get those true leaders who want to do it for the right reasons. And when they do step up, we must support them.”

PRINCIPLE #4: Move past reactive problem-solving, and be visionary in getting us to where we really need to go as a region

“I look back at Johnny Carline’s time as chief administrative officer with Metro Vancouver in the 2000s when his leadership resulted in a suite of management plans. We came together on the regional board because we believed our decisions were in the interests of a livable region. That was good, really good.”

PRINCIPLE #5: Ask the tough questions to make the tough decisions, all the while shining the light on what is affordable and effective

“Elected leaders need to provide the proper leadership so that we do look at the big picture and we are not forgetting the things that we might think are small now BUT are really important.”

“There is always going to be a battle for funding. And taxpayers cannot afford financial disasters like the Lions Gate wastewater treatment plant. The unintended consequences illustrate why elected leaders must ask tough questions so that they can make better decisions.”

Reflect on what it means to take responsibility to get to the right decision for the community

“Lions Gate demonstrates the consequences of planning a project poorly and then doing it fast. And I have to take some responsibility for what happened. I was the chair. I could have and should have made better decisions. I should have asked tougher questions…in a respectful way, of course.”

“A good leader educates themself to become a good board member. That is what I have since learned from the director’s training that I have taken as the Metro representative on the Vancouver Fraser Ports Authority.”

“With Lions Gate, the federal government wanted us to fast-track a design-build. With what I know now, we should have spent more time on planning to do it right and then build fast,” concludes Darrell Mussatto,

To Learn More:

To read the complete story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: When an elected leader is THE CHAMPION, the community benefits.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Darrell-Mussatto_reflections-by-an-elected-leaders_2024.pdf

CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION: “You can have a succession of changes. At the end you want to sustain miserable leftovers. We adjust our baseline. And the question is, why do people accept this? Well, because they don’t know that it was different,” stated UBC’s Daniel Pauly, a legendary global fisheries scientist, when he coined the term Shifting Baseline Syndrome in 1995 (1st installment of a preview series)

September 18, 2024 9:58 am Comments Off

Note to Reader:

Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. The edition published on September 17^th 2024 is the first of a series of reflections that preview the SYNOPSIS for the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver (1994-2024). The release date for the Synopsis is November 2024.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Solutions to complex problems require deep knowledge – preview extract from the Synopsis for the “Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in the Metro Vancouver Region (1994-2024)”

Launched in 1994, the Georgia Basin Initiative was a call to action by the provincial government of the day. “There was trouble in paradise. All communities knew they were under intense pressure and that we had to do something about it,” says Joan Sawicki, former provincial cabinet minister, and champion for the Georgia Basin Initiative.

“There is no reason to reinvent the wheel. Just turn it. The living legacy of the Georgia Basin Initiative is embedded and embodied in the successor Georgia Basin Inter-Regional Education Initiative (IREI). Three decades and counting is an amazing legacy. The IREI itself is in Year 13,” adds Kim Stephens, Executive Director with the Partnership for Water Sustainability.

Turn the wheel, overcome amnesia

“Solutions to complex problems transcend line items in a report. A set of cascading factors must all be in alignment to effect change,” emphasizes Kim Stephens. “The table below illustrates how the Metro Vancouver region has regressed from a situation where many things were in alignment to one where few are in alignment.”

“Keeping the last column of the table in mind, how will provincial and local governmentsOVERCOME ORGANIZATIONAL AMNESIA? Political leadership and commitment is essential. Elected leaders just have to understand WHY a livable region is important and then commit to a plan to make it happen.”

A defining statement characterizes each era:

With new political commitment, rebuild the coalition for the Livable Region Plan

“Knowing what we know, it is not as simple as going from an X to a tick mark in each column. You have to build new political commitment and basically start all over again in a new crucible phase…where you coalition-build to develop a new shared vision, etc.,” states Ray Fung, retired director of municipal engineering and transportation.

In the 2000s. Ray Fung chaired the BC Water Sustainability Committee (2003-2008) and the Green Infrastructure Partnership (2008-2010), Both were rolled into the Partnership for Water Sustainability upon incorporation as a non-profit legal entity in 2010.

Leveraging a political moment – an illustrative example:

“One of my legacy projects was implementing a universal water metering program. It is one example of leveraging a political moment and making a difference for water use and conservation.”

“The municipality was in the media spotlight because we were perceived to be the region’s water hogs. This was not a label that Council wanted to own or wear. The other factor that helped get support for universal metering was human nature.”

“You believe it is your neighbour who is wasting water, not you. And you do not want to subsidize your neighbour who waters their lawn 24 hours a day. It was that self-interest plus political commitment that was more persuasive than language about equity, efficiency and water conservation benefits.”

“But what would leveraging political commitment and self-interest look like for rainwater management and riparian forest integrity in today’s context? What combination will it take to effect change?”

Springboard to 2025 and beyond

“The task at hand is about how to redefine things in a new political environment so you would be able to get a new vision and new political commitment. This is how you ride the curve from a new crucible period to another golden period. Learn from past experience. There is no time to reinvent the wheel.”

“Housing affordability is an issue and more people in the same area of land means increasing housing density. But as you go up, you need more park and open space. The need for tree cover becomes even more grave to reduce the heat island effect.”

“When you function stack, stream corridors for drainage and habitat can also be recreation corridors for enjoyment of nature. And that is needed to keep up with the housing density going up. Packaging and framing it that way rides that curve. It is the only way to build political support,” concludes Ray Fung.

Complementary perspectives about political commitment and leadership to effect change

To Learn More:

To read the complete story, download a copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver – Solutions to complex problems require deep knowledge.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Green-Infrastructure-Chronicle-preview1_2024.pdf

Author Archives: Partnership for Water Sustainability

Note to Reader:

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Is our food security slipping away without anyone noticing? – extracts from a conversation with Ted van der Gulik

TOPIC ONE – Agricultural Land Use Inventories reveal that, even with the ALR, we are losing our best farmland without even knowing it

The ALR saved the land for farming but…

TOPIC TWO – We need to embrace a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil

There is untapped Natural Intelligence in nature

TOPIC THREE – We already have the tools to support a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil

Setting targets for efficient outdoor water use

TOPIC FOUR – The Agriculture Water Demand Model generates numbers that make the case for establishing Agriculture Water Reserves

Water is life and without water, there is no food

Food security is still within our grasp

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/11/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Ted-van-der-Gulik-perspective-on-food-security_2024.pdf

Note to Reader:

Understand my regional growth strategies matter

It is not too late to use the regional growth strategies tool the way it was intended

Create Livable Communities and Protect Stream Health: 7-part series previews the Green Infrastructure Chronicle

EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE / CONTEXT FOR BUSY READER

Nested layers – context for integrating perspectives to create livable communities

Understand The Why

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Understand why regional growth strategies matter – extracts from a conversation with Mike Harcourt, former premier of British Columbia

Collaboration across boundaries begins with conversations about common interests

Georgia Basin Initiative: when the stars align anything is possible

Georgia Basin Initiative spawned a movement

Successor initiatives

Download Joint Statement of Cooperation on the Georgia Basin and Puget Sound Ecosystems

To learn more, visit Georgia Basin Inter-Regional Educational Initiative

Closing reflections on the passing of the intergenerational baton

Journey from then to now

Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver from 1994 through 2024

Table of Cascading Factors – a lesson learned is that all must be in alignment for success

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/11/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Mike-Harcourt-on-regional-growth-strategies_2024.pdf

Note to Reader:

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Land planning perspective for risk reduction along streams – extracted from the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver from 1994 through 2024

TOPIC ONE: A short history of stream setback regulation provides context for development of the EAP methodology for budget purposes

Systemic failure results in Riparian Deficits

TOPIC TWO: Why an interagency task group developed the Riparian Forest Integrity relationship to land use for the Metro region

Streams were degrading

Riparian forest integrity is a pillar of stream protection

TOPIC THREE: Watershed Health Rating System applied the lessons from Puget Sound research and did projections to the Year 2036

The picture tells a story. RED denotes POOR and ORANGE denotes FAIR.

A missed opportunity

TOPIC FOUR: Predictive tool for making the financial case at a regional scale for investing in annual maintenance of stream systems

The spatial approach using land parcels makes sense to local governments

Sam Gerrand completed the first master’s EAP thesis

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Tim-Pringle_risk-reduction-along-streams_2024.pdf

Note to Reader:

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Think about this because it helps to understand why the Livable Region Strategic Plan matters – extracts from a conversation with Ken Cameron

Asking the question, what is bothering you?, resulted in the Livable Region Proposals (1976)

In 1983, the Province of BC cancelled all Official Regional Plans but could not cancel what was un-cancellable

Livable Region Proposals were founded on sophisticated knowledge of the region:

The region found a bottom-up way to carry on with voluntary regional planning

In 1987, a renewed commitment to rebuild the regional planning function from the ground up led to Creating Our Future

In 1990, an action plan provided a regional framework for maintaining and enhancing the livability of Metro Vancouver

A process of voluntary cooperation

In 1996, the Minister of Municipal Affairs’ approval of the regional growth strategy was a defining moment in the history of the region

Erik Karlsen led a province-wide consultation process

Ben Marr believed that integrated planning is the key to managing BC’s settlements and their resources

Adopted by the Regional District Board in January and approved by the Minister in February

When Johnny Carline succeeded Ben Marr as CAO, he discovered sustainability as the focus for government and the region

Dr. Louise Comeau of FCM opened eyes and minds to climate change

It is about the life support system for the region

Closing thoughts on why the Metro Vancouver Regional Livability Strategic Plan still matters

Metro 2050 – Regional Growth Strategy

Implications of provincial housing policy for livability

Living Water Smart in British Columbia Series

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/10/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Ken-Cameron_reflections-on-Livable-Region-Strategic-Plan_2024.pdf

Note to Reader:

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Reflections on the 3-year transition strategy for embedding EAP at Vancouver Island University – extracts from a conversation with Murray Walters about the Regional District of Nanaimo experience

THREAD ONE: Why the RDN is all-in with its commitment to the EAP Partnership

A way forward is starting to crystallize

THREAD TWO: Why the RDN selected French Creek as its 2nd EAP project

Governance in an electoral area of a regional district

THREAD THREE: How the RDN will use what they have learned from French Creek

The DWWP function made it possible to advance EAP

Collaboration leverages science to inform policy

To Learn More:

TOPIC TWO – **We need to embrace a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil**

TOPIC THREE – **We already have the tools to support a Caretaker Leadership vision for protection of water and soil**

Create Livable Communities and Protect Stream Health:
7-part series previews the Green Infrastructure Chronicle

Asking the question, ***what is bothering you?*, resulted in the Livable Region Proposals (1976)**