LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “If we apply EAP to land owned by the RDN to help prove that Natural Asset Management is meaningful, and the Regional Board accepts it, then I see that as the trigger to influence other people who also have land to behave in a similar fashion,” stated Murray Walters, Manager of Water Services with the Regional District of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island
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.
An engineering perspective grounds Natural Asset Management
“The Regional District of Nanaimo had an early interest in EAP. So much so, the Millstone River was one of five Stage 3 projects in the 6-year program of applied research that tested, refined and mainstreamed the EAP methodology and metrics,” states Anna Lawrence of the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute (MABRRI) at Vancouver Island University. Anna is the Project Coordinator for the EAP Transition Strategy Partnership.
“During that 6-year period, the Partnership for Water Sustainability relied on MABRRI staff and VIU students to do data analysis and GIS work. Now, with the EAP Transition Strategy Partnership, MABRRI is the program lead and the Partnership for Water Sustainability has an oversight and mentoring role.”
With French Creek, the RDN will take its Millstone River experience to another level
“In Year One of the 3-year transition, we were learning the EAP methodology. When we began Year Two, the plan was to gather community member input and develop a research question to explore in Year Two…which is what we have done.”
“EAP has seven steps. So, in Year One we focused on the first three to start out because they are basic for any EAP analysis. In Year Two, we are building on this base of information and data that we now have for French Creek.”
Overview of the two-year program to date
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To Learn More:
To read the complete story, download a copy on 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