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CAVI-Convening for Action on Vancouver Island

    FLASHBACK TO 2019: “We have moved beyond continuing education solely for the purpose of professional development. We are exploring what implementation of regional policy means on the ground,” stated Glenn Westendorp when he reflected on the collaborative framework for the Comox Valley Learning Lunch Seminar Series


    From 2008 onwards, Glenn Westendorp was an enthusiastic player in the CAVI-Convening for Action on Vancouver Island initiative as a member of the CAVI-Comox Valley Regional Team. In 2019, he retired from local government as Superintendent of Public Works with the Town of Comox. Upon retirement, and to recognize his sustained commitment to the Living Water Smart vision, the Partnership for Water Sustainability honoured Glenn Westendorp with Lifetime Member status for his help in demonstrating the benefits of the ‘regional team approach’ in the Comox Valley.

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    FLASHBACK TO 2008: “We are turning the tide because development and redevelopment projects are now incorporating features for rainwater runoff capture,” stated the City of Nanaimo’s Dean Mousseau at the Vancouver Island Learning Lunch Series, a peer-based education initiative under the umbrella of the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia


    The Inland Kenworth truck and heavy equipment facility in the City of Nanaimo illustrates what can be accomplished through collaboration when a municipality challenges a development proponent to be innovative. “We view this project as the one that has changed the thinking of the consulting community in Nanaimo, particularly on redevelopment projects,” stated Dean Mousseau when he reflected on the changes that had taken place in Nanaimo as an outcome of establishing the Inland Kenworth precedent for ‘designing with nature’.

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    TODAY’S EXPECTATIONS ARE TOMORROW’S STANDARDS – theme for Seminar 1 of inaugural Comox Valley Learning Lunch Seminar Series (September 2008)


    The first Comox Valley seminar on September 19th 2008 was introductory in scope, with the objective of stimulating the interest of participants in doing self-exploration by digging into a list of web resources at their leisure. “A set of four presentations provided context for the day and set the scene for a walkabout through the Glacier View Pond area in East Courtenay. After the walkabout, we delved into the details of BC’s Stormwater Guidebook and how the Water Balance Model had been developed as an extension of the Guidebook,” stated Kim Stephens.

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    The Story of East Courtenay over the past two decades: from fields and forest to urban community


    “We featured the east Courtenay area in the first seminar because this part of the city has evolved from fields and forest over the past two decades, and so has our approach to rainwater and stormwater management. We incorporated a walkabout at the front-end of the seminar program so that participants would have a visual frame of reference for concepts that will be covered in the curriculum for the second and third seminars,” stated Kevin Lagan. A key objective is consistency at local front counters so that developers and development consultants hear a consistent message as to what is expected of them.

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    LIVING WATER SMART IN THE COMOX VALLEY: “The City of Courtenay saw hosting the Learning Lunch Seminar Series as an exciting opportunity to further advance a regional team approach,” stated Kevin Lagan, Director of Operational Services (2008)


    “The June 2008 release of Living Water Smart provided a timely provincial frame-of-reference for the Learning Lunch Series. The City collaborated with the CAVI team to explore a bottom-up approach that would inform implementation of Living Water Smart. Our goal was to demonstrate how we can all do business differently and thereby make green choices that create liveable communities and protect stream health,” stated Kevin Lagan.

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    CREATING LIVEABLE COMMUNITIES & PROTECTING STREAM HEALTH: “Adapting to climate change and reducing impact on the environment will be conditions of receiving provincial infrastructure funding,” stated Catriona Weidman when she explained how the Province of British Columbia is helping goals become practice through the use of grant conditions (2008 Comox Valley Learning Lunch Seminar Series)


    The Province enacted legislation (Bill 27) that will help municipalities and regional districts create more compact, sustainable and greener communities. The legislation came into force in June 2008. “The Province is leveraging its grants programs to influence changes on the ground. British Columbia is in transtion. Today, assessment criteria are based on a philosophy of ‘the greener the better’ Tomorrow, all projects must meet a green standard,” stated Catriona Weidman.

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    EXPECTATIONS EVOLVE OVER TIME: A walkabout through the Glacier View Pond Area illustrated changes in rainwater management practice in the City of Courtenay (September 2008)


    A seminar presentation by Ian Whitehead set the scene for a walkabout through the Glacier View Pond area. His 20-year history as the City’s consultant of record provided a historical retrospective on the evolution of drainage practices in east Courtenay. The walkabout provided an on-the-ground illustration of those practices. “In the last 15 to 20 years, we have seen dramatic changes in the Comox Valley in terms of land use. Rainwater effects on the environment have been dramatic,” stated Ian Whitehead.

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    Role of building inspectors in green infrastructure: “To get to the big picture, it starts with the smallest pieces”


    “We are looking at our building inspectors doing more than just inspecting plumbing and buildings. We want them to be more involved at the front-end of the process, not the back-end when the building is being built. We want them involved at the subdivision stage so that they understand what we want to achieve. In other words, it is more than just a building going up, The building permit is for the site. The site needs to be managed,” stated Kevin Lagan.

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    CONNECTING DOTS: Stormwater Guidebook > Performance Targets > Water Balance Model


    “What we want are liveable communities and healthy streams. In 2002, the Guidebook brought together Washington State biology and British Columbia hydrology. We are ready for the next big push. Lessons learned since publication of the Guidebook have been incorporated in the ‘Beyond the Guidebook’ initiative. What we once believed to be unachievable is now within our grasp. We can now relate how you manage volume on the site to what you see in the stream … the stream is the canary in the coal mine,” stated Kim Stephens.

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    2008 COMOX VALLEY SEMINAR 1 ON YOUTUBE: Today’s Expectations are Tomorrow’s Standards


    “By placing the spotlight on the east Courtenay area in Seminar 1, this helped series participants understand why drainage practices comprise a continuum of paradigms, and communities progress at different rates along the continuum. A paradigm is what we think is true and right about a certain subject. It’s the grid through which we put all information and input about a subject. In fact, it’s everything we think is true about something,” stated Derek Richmond.

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