Water-Centric Planning

In his quest to make a difference in the local government setting, Harvy Takhar has advanced the state of the art for green roof design. He looked through the water balance lens to conceive and demonstrate what he describes as the connected blue-green roof concept. In a nutshell, Harvy had an epiphany when he recognized there was a gap in green roof engineering. “The idea was to harvest the benefits of green roofs, So we added a water cavity that will feed the green roof portion with capillary irrigation, and it can draw water when it needs it,” stated Harvy Takhar.

“The EAP Partnership was set up in a really unique, really valuable and viable way right from the beginning. The Partnership for Water Sustainability made the connections to the three local governments. Together, we met with each individually. Then we all got together as a group to talk about what our values are and what we are really hoping to achieve. The fact that the three are showing their support for the students, and for the training to occur, is a great story. I just wish that partnerships like this existed among all research projects,” stated Graham Sakaki.

For two decades, Chris May had a leadership position in Washington State local government – first with the City of Seattle and then with Kitsap County. The latter was his living laboratory. Because he was Division Director, he could put science into practice. “Kitsap is at a manageable scale. The County is big enough to effect change and make things better. That was our goal – have a positive impact on the community! We knew we needed to work on multiple scales and on multiple fronts to improve conditions in our small stream watersheds – that was our strategy,” stated Chris May.

“If we know how to do a much better job of protecting ecological features and stream systems in our communities and on our landscape, then why aren’t we doing a better job? Why are streams still being degraded? These are among the questions driving the EAP program. The methodology and metrics focus on the land underlying the natural asset. In the case of stream systems, this is the setback zone defined in B.C. provincial legislation – namely, the Riparian Areas Protection Regulation,” stated Tim Pringle.

“A Partnership strength is the real-world experience we bring because of our multiple initiatives under Living Water Smart Actions. Under that vision, various building blocks processes have evolved over the decades. Living Water Smart successes are defined by collaboration and a “top-down and bottom-up” approach. This brings together decision-makers and community advocates. Successes are milestones along a building blocks continuum. We can achieve better stewardship of BC’s water resources for present and future generations,” stated Ted van der Gulik.

“Now that the Northeast Comox rainwater management plan is in place, water balance modeling is a requirement, and supporting bylaws help us regulate what developers must do on the ground. Two new bylaws underpin the Town’s regulatory framework for maintaining the water balance after land is developed. The framework accounts for all three pathways by which rainwater reaches a stream, incorporates an Adaptive Management Plan, and is supported by a monitoring program. The plan identifies triggers that would lead to changes,” stated Shelley Ashfield.

“We have landed at the crux of two of the most important issues facing Canadians – relationships with First Nations and relationships with water – in an era when we must also adapt to a changing climate. Communities have a once in a generation opportunity to get our relationships with both right. First Nations talk about the responsibility for care of the land being passed on from one generation to the next. They have been much more effective than us in having the community understand their role in stewardship and why that matters,” stated Richard Boase.

“Building stewardship sector capacity to support local and provincial planning and resource management processes would enhance the effectiveness of stream stewards as champions for reconnecting hydrology and ecology in settled areas. It would also fill a gap in small creek systems where flow data are sparse to non-existent. Stream stewards can collaborate with governments and resource managers to support a science-based approach that interweaves Indigenous knowledge to educate the population writ large about the fragile nature of the ‘water balance’ in local creeksheds,” stated Kim Stephens.

“It is an exciting time to be responsible for hydrometric data collection in British Columbia. The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy has received new funding to build a team and distribute hydrometric technicians across the province to train and mentor stewardship groups, First Nations, and internal staff regarding hydrometric operation,” says Neil Goeller. “The Province is looking for opportunities to improve the base of information that informs decisions related to land and resource planning. And stewardship groups provide a great opportunity to produce that kind of information.”

BC Transit’s handyDART facility in the Town of View Royal is now home to young salmon and trout. “This is a joyful moment. It’s the reason we have the Salmon-Safe program ― to encourage land and water stewardship that help wild salmon thrive,” stated Theresa Fresco. The new stream has riffles and pools, as well as purposely placed rocks, logs and weirs that break up the water flow, introduce oxygen to the water, and reduce stream bank erosion. The stream has also created a wildlife corridor connecting to the forest along Craigflower Creek.