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“For the past twenty years, the City of Dawson Creek has taken upon itself to better understand and manage its source water supply. Its experience may be of value to other communities – both urban, rural and First Nations – around the province that have yet to prepare a Surface Water Protection Plan,” states Reg Whiten. “Through the City’s creation of a formal, ongoing Watershed Steward position and program in 2008, considerable impetus has been given to SWPP implementation.”

“The most fundamental contribution of the Water Stewardship Council to water resources management in the Okanagan is that it provides a consistent forum for effective, transparent, and reliable communication among the many levels of stakeholder regarding recent developments and urgent water issues,” states Bernard Bauer, Chair.

“Recognizing the importance of the issue, the Regional Board identified a rainwater strategy as a NOW priority in its September 2012 Strategic Plan. Rainwater management policy statements and development permit area guidelines will be developed; will include objectives to address climate change impacts, adaptive management and performance standards; and will be implemented as part of the current Official Community Plan review,” stated Kevin Lorette.

“Once we know what we want our watersheds and neighbourhoods to look like, the next step is to decide what the tools are that will get us there. All of us ….whether we are regulators, developers or designers ….need to understand and care about the goal if we are to create the future that we all want,” states Vincent Lalonde.

“The commitment by the Metro Vancouver Board, senior management and staff has been tangible, consistent and long-term. Their support continues to help the Partnership advance a vision for designing with nature and implementing green infrastructure. In this way, communities can restore and protect the Water Balance,” stated Tim Pringle.

In March, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn announced a new goal for managing Seattle’s stormwater runoff with natural drainage systems. “Whenever possible, we should be looking for ways to better manage our stormwater with natural processes and leveraging our drainage investments. Seattle residents and businesses care about the environment. And that’s why we are inviting the whole community to join us in this effort,” said Mayor McGinn.

“This book is put forward as an educational service to inform the public, government and decision makers about solutions that have been proposed by environmental law experts. Their recommendations are presented here for public education, debate and consideration – and to trigger law reform ideas from others. Ultimately, we hope that this book will enrich the discussion about how laws can be changed to better maintain SuperNatural British Columbia for our children,” concludes Calvin Sandborn.

“BC environmental laws are in urgent need of reform. The stakes are high. Yet current laws have not only failed to keep pace with our booming resource industries and population growth — our laws are actually weaker than they were a few years ago. The articles in this book aim to remedy this by recommending specific changes to BC environmental laws. ,This book is a series of 35 short, readable articles – punctuated by photos and cartoons – that describe key environmental law reforms that the authors believe the next provincial government should consider” states Calvin Sandborn.

“Climate change will radically affect the ecosystems we rely on, and knows no political boundaries, requiring local governments to think collaboratively about shared watersheds and coastlines, and stretching already overloaded human and financial resources. Climate change impacts require us to think about connections between physical hazards, economic resilience, health risks, environmental goods and services, food security and freshwater challenges on a local, regional, national and global scale,” states Deborah Harford.

“More than a decade into the 21st century, the idea of collaborative watershed management has come of age, and watershed groups across the province are eager to participate. It is all about learning to think like a watershed. That is our vision. By examining all actions in the context of the watershed, we can move toward a governance system that is rooted in ecological principles, and shift the focus towards managing the people within a watershed, rather than controlling the watershed itself ” emphasizes Oliver Brandes.