Water-Centric Planning

CLIMATE CHANGE AND STREAM DAYLIGHTING IN URBAN CENTRES: “As heavier rainfall, extreme weather and aging infrastructure place growing pressure on cities, buried streams could become part of the solution,” wrote the University of Waterloo’s Dr. Luna Khirfan

Note to Reader:

This article by Dr. Luna Khirfan is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. She is Associate Professor at the School of Planning, the University of Waterloo, in Ontario, Canada. In her research, she develops coupled human-natural systems models to inform planning, policies, and behavior while accounting for justice and equity.

Luna Khirfan’s work underscores the relationship between public engagement, place making, and place experience particularly, in the rehabilitation of historic cities and in adaptation to climate change. She is also Lead Author for the recently published Chapter 6: “Cities, settlements and key infrastructure” which is part of the Working Group II contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report.

In featuring the Luna Khirfan story, we use it as a springboard to connect the dots to two stories about the work of Mark Angelo and his lifetime mission to restore Still Creek and its Guichon Creek tributary in the Metro Vancouver region in the City of Burnaby.

Many cities buried urban streams / Here’s how to bring them back

As many cities developed, streams that once flowed on the surface were buried underground to make way for growing infrastructure. However, as heavier rainfall, extreme weather and aging infrastructure place growing pressure on cities, these buried streams could become part of the solution.

Seoul’s Cheonggyecheon stream combines a restored urban stream with pedestrian paths, stepped seating and bridges along a major downtown corridor. (Luna Khirfan), CC BY-NC-SALuna Khirfan, University of Waterloo

Restoring streams to the surface — a practice known as stream daylighting — can help manage stormwater, restore habitats and create greener, more walkable public spaces. But recognizing these benefits is easier than delivering a successful project.

Municipalities must find feasible sites, co-ordinate across departments, secure funding and plan for long-term maintenance. But they must also ensure that environmental improvements benefit existing residents rather than contribute to displacement.

My research on stream daylighting compares two contrasting approaches in Seoul, South Korea, and Zürich, Switzerland. The findings suggest that municipalities don’t need to choose between a single large project and many small interventions. They need flexible programs that can identify the right approach for each site and apply lessons from one project to the next.

Two cities, two approaches

Between 2003 and 2005, Seoul restored the Cheonggyecheon stream through a rapid, centralized and costly project along one major downtown corridor. The city removed an elevated motorway and integrated the restored stream with public transit, cycling infrastructure, pedestrian bridges, walkways and public spaces.

The example shows what stream daylighting can accomplish when political leadership, infrastructure renewal and major public investment align. It also exposes the risks associated with large flagship projects. The project required substantial capital investment and continues to incur maintenance costs.

Critics have questioned its ecological integrity because pumps supply water to the channel. Redevelopment around the corridor also increased land values and displaced some smaller businesses.

Zürich’s Bachkonzept, or stream concept, took a different approach. The city began with pilot projects in the 1980s and restored numerous smaller stream segments over several decades.

Zürich linked the projects to sewer management, infrastructure renewal, ecological restoration and neighbourhood planning. Daylighted streams now pass through residential areas, parks and public spaces. Paths, small bridges, seating, playgrounds and recreational areas accompany many of them.

No single project in Zürich has the public profile of Seoul’s Cheonggyecheon. Together, however, the projects form a distributed network that improves watershed function, connects habitats and gives neighbourhoods greater access to water.

This incremental approach may be more practical for many smaller municipalities. Cities can begin with manageable sites, monitor their performance and pursue new projects as infrastructure renewal or redevelopment creates opportunities.

Find opportunities before they disappear

The first step is not construction. It is mapping.

Municipalities can combine culvert inventories and historical watercourse maps with data on flood and heat risks, social vulnerability, public land, parks, planned infrastructure projects and major redevelopment sites.

Mapping does not imply that every buried stream should return to the surface. It gives municipalities a consistent way to identify sites that deserve technical study before other land-use and infrastructure decisions make daylighting difficult or impossible.

Toronto illustrates this challenge. The city recognizes historical watercourses and supports their restoration where feasible. But that support fails to identify what sites should receive priority, who should assess them or how a project would be funded and maintained.

Research on flood risks in Toronto identifies Black Creek and Flemingdon Park among the neighbourhoods where flood exposure intersects with social vulnerability and limited capacity to adapt. Combining this evidence with lost-stream mapping, public land ownership and capital plans could help the city identify equitable pilot opportunities.

Choose the right delivery pathway

Stream daylighting generally enters municipal practice through one of two routes.

The first is public capital works. Culvert replacement, sewer separation, road reconstruction, park renewal, ravine restoration and flood-control projects give municipalities opportunities to examine whether a stream should remain underground. This pathway is especially promising on public land, where a municipality has greater control over design, public access and maintenance.

The second route is private redevelopment. Large industrial, commercial, brownfield or transit-area sites may provide enough space to restore a stream channel, accommodate floodwater and establish vegetation.

Timing matters. Once buildings, roads and development densities are set in place, restoring a waterway becomes much more difficult. Municipalities should screen large sites early and make decisions about land dedication, development rights, public access, construction costs and maintenance transparent.

A section of Still Creek in Burnaby, B.C. (Flying Penguin), CC BY-SA

Vancouver’s Still Creek shows how municipal investment, redevelopment opportunities, watershed planning and community stewardship can support gradual restoration rather than one defining project.

Over more than two decades, the city and its partners have delivered site-specific projects involving habitat restoration, rainwater management and public access, including a developer-funded daylighting project completed in 2009.

Updated plans now connect future restoration to redevelopment and flood management, while community organizations contribute through stewardship and salmon monitoring.

Build a program that learns

A daylighting project doesn’t end when construction finishes. Vegetation becomes established, water conditions change and communities use new public spaces in unexpected ways. Municipalities should therefore follow an adaptive cycle: map, assess, co-design, implement, monitor, learn, adjust and scale.

Monitoring should cover flood performance, water quality, habitat, public use, accessibility, maintenance costs and equity. Municipalities should then use the findings to manage completed sites and improve the selection and design of future projects.

Equity also requires sustained attention. Attractive public spaces can increase neighbourhood desirability and development pressure. Affordable housing measures, community benefits and ongoing monitoring can help ensure that existing residents share in the gains.

Scaling a daylighting program does not necessarily mean constructing a larger project. It can mean building a connected portfolio of smaller interventions that gradually restores watershed function.

Stream daylighting will not be feasible everywhere. Without a clear program, however, municipalities may never identify where it could work.

The central lesson from Seoul and Zürich is that cities should treat buried streams not simply as forgotten natural features. They are ecological systems, climate infrastructure and, if developed with care, public spaces all residents can enjoy.

THE STORY OF A STILL CREEK TRIBUTARY: Mark Angelo’s “The Little Creek That Could”

Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the vision for Living Water Smart in British Columbia to build greener communities and adapt to a changing climate. The edition published on January 23th 2022 featured The Little Creek That Could, a children’s book by Mark Angelo. Known far and wide for his numerous river conservation and restoration initiatives, Mark Angelo is an iconic figure in British Columbia.

The Little Creek That Could is a children’s book. But it is much, much more. It is an “oral history” about a lifetime commitment to bringing a degraded urban stream back to life. The book is inspired by the true story of how Mark Angelo, as a young teacher, led the charge alongside students, teachers, and community members to restore Guichon Creek, a small urban creek in the City of Burnaby – demonstrating to readers how the power of one can impact change.

A Story of Hope and Inspiration

“The challenges we face today are immense, but we just have to keep plugging away. I spend so much time with children; that is one of the reasons that led me to write the book The Little Creek That Could. My grandchildren were my source of inspiration. For years, I told them the story. During the pandemic, I finally sat down and wrote the book,” stated Mark Angelo.

“It is a story that in my view has an important message, one that will hopefully appeal to children, as well as their influencers who in many cases will read the book to their children. The book tells the story of a creek that came back to life. It is an illustrated children’s book that tells the true story of the five-decade long effort to restore and revive Burnaby’s own Guichon Creek. It was literally a dead stream.”

“The book speaks to the fact that nature can heal itself if only given a chance. It is a positive and hopeful message for kids. I also think it is very timely given where we are in time. While this book focuses on healing a single stream, the broader message is about healing the environment. My hope is that it will resonate with many regardless of where they live, whether in our province or in our country.”

TO LEARN MORE:

To read the complete story published on January 25th 2022, download a PDF copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: The Little Creek That Could.

DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/wcp/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2022/01/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Mark-Angelo_2022.pdf

FLASHBACK TO 2012: Still Creek – rebirth of an urban stream in Metro Vancouver (video)

In the video below, Mark Angelo and others tell an inspiring story about salmon and the transformation of a long-abused urban stream in their community.

“Salmon miracle in the city –
never give up on any river!”

The Still Creek watershed covers an area of approximately 28 km2 within the Cities of Vancouver and Burnaby. It is a highly urbanized watershed with a population of over 100,000 residents. Throughout its recent history, Still Creek has been channelized and enclosed and bears little resemblance to the original waterway.

“Over many decades, people in the area have worked tirelessly to help bring the creek back to health. In November 2012, for the first time in around 80 years, a large number of full-size chum salmon have been observed returning to spawn in many parts of Still Creek,” states Mark Angelo, an internationally-celebrated river conservationist, writer, speaker, teacher and paddler.

“To see salmon return to Still Creek after so many decades has been incredibly exciting, especially given that just a few decades ago, this stream was widely viewed as one of Canada’s most polluted waterways. Quite simply, the events that have unfolded on Still Creek highlight the fact that we should never give up on any river.”

About Still Creek

Still Creek arises in western Burnaby, just north of Central Park. From there it flows northwest into Vancouver, and then north.

For years, the entire stretch from Central Park to 29th Avenue has been culverted as part of the City of Vancouver’s storm sewer system. Across the street from the 29th Avenue Station, the creek emerges into the open, and runs north along the bottom of the Renfrew Ravine.

After running under the intersection of 22nd Avenue and Renfrew Street, the creek runs through the park beside the Renfrew Community Centre. It then is culverted again for several blocks, emerging just before the Grandview Highway, where it turns east, towards Burnaby.

From Renfrew Street in Vancouver to Gilmore in Burnaby, Still Creek has been channelized for most of its length, and culverted for the rest. East of Gilmore, the creek has been left in a mostly natural channel, and for the last kilometre or so before Burnaby Lake, the land on either side of the creek has been protected from development.

To Learn More:

The City of Vancouver is working with neighbouring municipalities to:

Return creekside habitat to native plantings
Remove concrete and naturalize creek banks
Add interpretive plaques and boardwalks to provide recreational and educational opportunities

For details of the plan, see the Still Creek Rehabilitation and Enhancement Study.