Feature Article: Comox Valley
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THIRD EDITION – SUMMER 2011 ISSUE Comox Valley Feature Article: Local Governments Showcase Sustainable Service Delivery. The Comox Valley Program “A Regional Response to is built around an annual seminar series. This program is Infrastructure Liability” the foundation for a ‘regional team approach’. The By Kim A Stephens P. Eng., seminars provide a neutral forum for sharing, exploring Executive Director, and learning in a way that no other forum currently Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia provides. The series attracts our local government on behalf of the Comox Valley Regional Team personnel, developers, consultants, and non- government organizations located in the Comox Valley The initial capital cost of infrastructure is about 20% of as well as local governments and others from outside the life-cycle cost; the other 80% largely represents a the Comox Valley. The open forum facilitates cross- future liability. Each year, the funding shortfall grows. fertilization of experience and ideas. This is a driver for local governments in the Comox Valley to change the way they plan, finance, implement (Feature Article continued on page 2) and, over time, replace or renew our infrastructure. Articles in this Edition: Feature article: Comox Valley Local Governments Showcase - “A Regional Response to Infrastructure Liability” Infrastructure Canada has New Minister Case Study: District of Lake Country Lake Country is Being Proactive – by the District of Lake Country’s CAO, Alberto De Feo (from my weekly blog) Australia AM Process Piloted in BC and Saskatchewan Upcoming Events Sustainable Service Delivery RoadMap for Asset Management being Published Successful CNAM conference and CNAM News Through a program of professional development, the Tips & Tactics regional district and three municipalities are aligning Comments, Quotes & Notes of interest efforts, building leadership capacity and striving for a Future editions consistent Comox Valley regional approach to AM Questions & Answers www.assetmanagementbc.ca 1 Sustainable Service Delivery Key Objectives for Holistic Approach (Article continued from page 1) “Town-hall sessions are an important part of the “The focus of the 2011 Series is on the unfunded seminar program. The sharing and learning that takes ‘infrastructure liability’ confronting all local place is quite powerful. An ‘Ah-Ha moment’ at Seminar governments. One of the foundation pieces #1 was realizing how we needed to describe the underpinning the series is expressed this way: All those distinction between traditional infrastructure and green involved in land development have a role to play in infrastructure. As the discussion swirled, it became clear achieving Sustainable Service Delivery. The players that framing the infrastructure liability issue in terms of include land use and infrastructure professionals,” three dimensions (or categories) would help everyone’s states Glenn Westendorp, Public Works Superintendent understanding,” reports Kevin Lagan, Director of with the Town of Comox. He is Chair of the 2011 Operational Services with the City of Courtenay. Seminar Series. “So, to promote a holistic approach to infrastructure “We have moved beyond continuing education solely asset management, we have crystallized three key for the purpose of professional development. The 2011 objectives for Sustainable Service Series is aligned with the recently adopted Regional Delivery: 1) pay down the legacy Growth Strategy and Regional cost of existing hard Sustainability Strategy. We are infrastructure; 2) reduce the life- exploring what cycle cost of new hard implementation of regional infrastructure; and, 3) shift from policy means on the ground. gray to green to protect We are working towards a downstream values (i.e. Joint Report on A Regional environmental and/or Kevin Lagan, agriculture).” City of Courtnay Response to Infrastructure Glenn Westendorp, Liability.” Town of Comox From Gray to Green Plan it Right at the ‘Front-End’ “The phrase ‘gray to green’ is becoming part of the language of land use professionals,” adds Judy Walker, “In April, Seminar #1 painted a picture of the ‘legacy Planner with the Village of Cumberland. “Viewed from liability’ of existing hard infrastructure – that is, roads space, the urbanized landscape appears to be mostly and pipes. In May, Seminar #2 dealt with green gray. This reflects the impact of roads, rooftops and infrastructure and ‘sustainable urban drainage’. paved surfaces. The need to shift from gray to green is Seminar #3 on June 30 will focus on floodplain and implicit in the working definition of Sustainable Service flooding issues,” continues Kevin Lorette, General Delivery. The paradigm-shift starts with land use Manager of the Property Services Branch in the Comox planning.” Valley Regional District. “After land is initially developed and/or redeveloped to “We know that the time to shape a higher density, rainwater runoff volume increases. future life-cycle costs is at the This results in cumulative impacts on streams. Local infrastructure planning ‘front- governments then bear the entire financial burden to end’; and we recognize the stabilize and restore importance of thinking at a watercourses that have been watershed scale. Protection of a impacted. At Seminar #2, we community’s natural learned that green infrastructure Kevin Lorette, resources is an important Comox Valley RD reduces runoff volumes, piece in Sustainable Service decreases stresses applied to Delivery, both fiscally and ecologically. Because nature creeks, has lower life-cycle costs, has no borders, the four Comox Valley local and enhances urban liveability.” Judy Walker, Town of Comox governments are exploring how we can align and integrate our efforts at a watershed scale. We can achieve that outcome within the existing governance framework.” Asset Management BC Newsletter Summer 2011 Design with Nature management, already exists within the Local Government Act and Community Charter. Local At Seminar #1 in the 2011 Series, Glen Brown (Executive governments can develop a truly integrated Asset Director with the Ministry of Community, Sport and Management Strategy that views the watershed though Cultural Development) provided this context: an environmental lens.” “Sustainable Service Delivery is the Province’s branding for a life-cycle way of thinking about infrastructure “The Province’s Living Water Smart and Green needs and how to pay for them over time. The Communities initiatives are approach is holistic. We are challenging local catalysts for ‘designing with governments to think about what asset management nature’: Start with effective entails BEFORE the asset is built. The paradigm-shift green infrastructure and starts with land use planning and determining what protect environmental values. services can be provided sustainably, both fiscally and Get the watershed vision right. ecologically.” Then create a blueprint to implement green “The legislative authority for integration of land use infrastructure,” concluded planning and asset management, including financial Glen Brown, Glen Brown. Province of BC www.assetmanagementbc.ca 3 Asset Management BC Newsletter Summer 2011 Case Study: Infrastructure Canada has New District of Lake Country Minister A Random Act of Asset Management: Integrating Capital and Asset Management Planning By Sid Smith, Engineering Technologist, District of Lake Country Denis Lebel, MP for Roberval–Lac- Saint-Jean (Québec) was appointed Minister of Transport, The Story Infrastructure and Communities. There’s a story going around the asset management Mr. Lebel, as a prior Mayor of community of a colleague who attended a recent Roberval, Quebec and a Board conference where one presenter’s plea to the audience member of Union des was “Can ‘you guys’ just do one random act of asset Municipalités du Québec has a management?”. While not entirely random, the District of Lake Country’s Integrated Asset Management Plan Denis Lebel, MP clear understanding of the importance of infrastructure in our [IAMP] just might be that act. communities. The IAMP project arose from a Council strategic priority to The District of Lake In a recent speech to the Federation of Canada revise the District’s long- Country is a rural Municipalities in June, Mr. Lebel commented: term capital plan and led to community in the ‘This government will develop a long-term plan for developing a comprehensive central Okanagan with a population of public infrastructure that extends beyond the expiry of asset management cost approximately the Building Canada Plan. I look forward to working model integrating and guiding future capital 11,000 with stakeholders, to develop a long-term plan for planning and infrastructure public infrastructure beyond 2014. renewal for the District. The project was undertaken As part of the development of this plan, we will need to over the summer of 2010 with a tight seven week take stock of our past accomplishments, and work with project schedule and a firm completion deadline of st you to identify the priorities and key challenges that will August 31 . The project was a highly collaborative effort between the Lake Country Engineering Department and need to be addressed, as well as the actions we can take the consultant, Urban Systems Ltd. together to meet them.’ The primary objective was to combine capital needs, The current ‘Build Canada’ program expires in 2014. The infrastructure backlog and service level information into good news is the commitment by Infrastructure