Archive:

“In these challenging and unsettling times, it is imperative that we offer hope. Every edition of Waterbucket eNews is built around a conversational interview. We celebrate the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision We start with a compelling quotable quote and delve into the story behind the story because that is what is interesting. And relevant. We all learn through stories. During the past 3-month period, the Partnership has published 11 feature stories. This edition constitutes our season in review. We resume publication in mid-January. There are so many stories still to share,” stated Kim Stephens.

“In her role as Supervisor of Environmental Initiatives, Jody Watson has emphasized collaboration and teamwork at every opportunity. The initiatives are timely, and as a result, creative community partnerships are being forged to address changing circumstances. Jody is an inspiration, an able communicator and mentor who ‘walks her talk’, a champion for innovation, noting the importance of ecological principles within the development process. Jody is both a visionary and a pragmatist, for the vision and task are equally important,” stated Eric Bonham.

“Despite the population density that we have had to accommodate, and the ongoing growth due to the demand for housing, we have to set land aside for community liveability. The Biodiversity Conservation Strategy (2019) is pretty much a reflection of that need. Surrey’s Development Cost Charges Bylaw for the Strategy did not happen overnight. The framework for the strategy came out of the Fergus Creek watershed plan and the vision for green solutions many years before in 2006,” stated Rémi Dubé.

Three words define Carrie Baron’s engineering career: leadership, innovation and science. Carrie Baron has consistently been on the leading edge in advancing green infrastructure and protecting stream health. “The lucky part was that the people who set the groundwork at the lower levels all advanced to senior levels where their duties were bigger than drainage. But they all had that base knowledge. And so, you did not have to convince them the same way as you would with someone who did not have a base knowledge. It became more of a fluid discussion,” stated Carrie Baron.

“When I joined the City of Surrey in 1974, the municipality was looking at a way to deal with its stormwater drainage. The driver for action was the need to protect the agricultural lowlands from flooding caused by uplands urban development. First came the Natural Drainage Policy in 1975. This led to the requirement that every development build a detention pond. The next evolution was the move to community ponds,” stated Paul Ham.

“Sustainable service delivery should have been the engine for integration across disciplines, departments, and sectors. But that is not how it turned out. ASSET MANAGEMENT overshadows or dominates SUSTAINABLE SERVICE DELIVERY in everyday thinking. The two ideas have in practice become disconnected. It is no surprise that the asset management community has lost its way. We are observing this across sectors. Communities and local governments are being overwhelmed by the issues of the day, losing sight of the goal, and getting lost in the details,” stated Kim Stephens.

“There are so many things happening around a lake that we are not aware might influence the health of that lake. It is time for us all to take responsibility and look at water differently. We must be pragmatic and inclusive. Lakes cannot be considered in isolation, but rather within an integrated whole watershed system context, for the health of the lake is vulnerable and dependent upon land use activities in the surrounding watershed,” stated Eric Bonham.

“The loss of continuity in municipal engineering leadership throughout the region concerns me. Just imagine all the knowledge and understanding that must be re-learned. It has come at a critical time for the future direction of the region. Transitioning to a new council is also a challenge, and always has been. We need a better way to pass along the knowledge we gained to the newly elected ones without them feeling like the old crew are still in charge. We had our time in the office. Now it is their turn to carry the baton and be the champions,” stated Darrell Mussatto.

“When you think about land animals, they tend to be prisoners of topography and vegetation. But in the sea, it is really not the case. There is almost no barrier to fish moving around. They fly in the sea. Aquatic Scientists are thus confronted with this 3-D world and the physics and chemistry of that 3-D aquatic environment as a necessary component of how they understand the organisms that live in that environment,” stated Dr. Dave Preikshot.

“While many advances have been made in managing rainwater on-site, BC communities are failing to utilize practices that directly benefit streams during droughts and floods. The needs of BC communities closely align with the other west coast areas that suffer from adverse stream flows rather than the degradation of water quality which is the case on the east coast. The western states require that stormwater management systems maintain stream flow duration to protect against stream erosion and flooding,” stated Jim Dumont.