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The Cowichan Valley Regional District hosted the first of the Vancouver Island Learning Lunch Series in Summer 2008. At Seminar #2, Kate Miller used the “elephant in the room analogy” to capture audience attention vis-a-vis the implications of Living Water Smart for rainwater management. “There is an elephant in our room right now…which is around how do we deal with rainwater management…how do we deal with the larger policy issues…what’s the objective,” stated Kate Miller.

At the second seminar in the the 2008 Comox Valley Learning Lunch Seminar Series, Susan Rutherford of West Coast Environmental Law employed a question-and-answer format to illustrate opportunities and scales for law and policy to effect change, thereby suppoprting and achieving the Living Water Smart vision. “Kevin Lagan and Derek Richmond of the City of Courtenay provided me with some questions that are at the forefront of their minds. I morphed what they gave me into generic questions,” stated Susan Rutherford.

“The Forum was an outcome of the Cowichan Valley Learning Lunch Seminar Series, also a provincial pilot,” explained Kate Miller. “We described the Forum as a hybrid-training workshop because the day was built around case study applications of the Water Balance Model. These provided the technical foundation for roundtable sharing, exploration and cross-fertilization of ideas on how to implement green infrastructure effectively.”

“The Convening for Action vision is that water sustainability in British Columbia will be achieved through implementation of green infrastructure policies, practices and standards. Through regional initiatives such as CAVI, which is the acronym for Convening for Action on Vancouver Island, the Water Sustainability Action Plan is adding considerable depth to Living Water Smart. In 2008, CAVI undertook the Vancouver Island Learning Lunch Seminar Series as a provincial pilot,” stated Glen Brown.

“Living Water Smart provides leadership that will help improve the way we build and protect communities, use our water resources and sustain our quality of life,” stated Scott Veitch, Living Water Smart is a blueprint for cultural, environmental, industrial, community and agricultural change that will help safeguard the province’s water resources into the future. The plan commits to new actions and builds on existing efforts to protect and keep B.C.’s water healthy and secure.

“Not much will change without significantly increased budget commitments for
water. Also, an implementation strategy to achieve the targets and goals must be
established. These are the minimum requirements for turning rhetoric into reality. A long-overdue legislative overhaul of the B.C. Water Act is almost a certainty, but the
process for arriving at legislative proposals is vague,” stated Oliver Brandes.

“We’re interested in planning for long-term, balanced growth that will leave a legacy for the future – a strategy we see reflected in the Living Water Smart plan. Minister, this is phenomenal. We are committing ourselves as an industry to working with government at all levels to make sure this precious resource is protected for future generations,” stated Maureen Enser.

“This is a provincial strategy; we must look at it as a shared responsibility. It is not one strategy; the Province has a number of strategies. The Province is looking at raising the bar as far as what we are trying to accomplish with standards and provincial legislation. We really have to look at how we develop land. Ultimately this requires leadership and champions on the ground,” stated Glen Brown.

Living Water Smart is a blueprint for cultural, environmental, industrial, community and agricultural change that will help safeguard the province’s water resources. Released by Environment Minister Barry Penner in June 2008, the plan commits to new actions and builds on existing efforts to protect and keep B.C.’s water healthy and secure. “Living Water Smart: British Columbia’s Water Plan lays out the vision and the steps needed to protect our rivers, lakes, streams and watersheds. This plan will make B.C. a leader in water stewardship,” said Minister Penner.