4.6 Moving Forward in Water Planning, Management and Governance
As will become evident in later sections of this guide, a wide array of planning processes have been developed to assist local governments and other organizations in navigating the challenges of water management. In some regions of the province, significant momentum is building towards collaborative decision-making regarding watershed health in the face of economic and environmental change. As policy makers analyze and adjust management strategies with the current social, political, economic and environmental context, and as managers strategize to resolve conflicts between human and ecosystem needs, communities are learning to live water smart. The outlook is encouraging. In addition to the emergence of a new Water Act for BC, an overarching provincial policy framework presently exists – comprised of Living Water Smart and the Green Communities Initiative, two complementary initiatives. Living Water Smart provides the vision of the framework, and the Green Communities Initiative complements the Local Government Act tools to enable the vision. As a package, the framework provides guidance for aligning local actions with provincial and regional goals to “design with nature”, in order to create greener communities, live water smart and prepare for climate change. As observed in Beyond the Guidebook 2010, “BC is now at a tipping point. Implementation of a new culture for urban watershed protection and restoration is within our grasp”. 12
As will become evident in later sections of this guide, a wide array of planning processes have been developed to assist local governments and other organizations in navigating the challenges of water management. In some regions of the province, significant momentum is building towards collaborative decision-making regarding watershed health in the face of economic and environmental change. As policy makers analyze and adjust management strategies with the current social, political, economic and environmental context, and as managers strategize to resolve conflicts between human and ecosystem needs, communities are learning to live water smart. The outlook is encouraging. In addition to the emergence of a new Water Act for BC, an overarching provincial policy framework presently exists – comprised of Living Water Smart and the Green Communities Initiative, two complementary initiatives. Living Water Smart provides the vision of the framework, and the Green Communities Initiative complements the Local Government Act tools to enable the vision. As a package, the framework provides guidance for aligning local actions with provincial and regional goals to “design with nature”, in order to create greener communities, live water smart and prepare for climate change. As observed in Beyond the Guidebook 2010, “BC is now at a tipping point. Implementation of a new culture for urban watershed protection and restoration is within our grasp”. 12