Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed By Diana Nikolic B.A., University ot" Victoria, 1996 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS (PLANNING) in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES School of Community and Regional Planning We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA December 2001 © Diana Nikolic, 2001 UBC Special Collections - Thesis Authorisation Form Page 1 of 1 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of Sc "\QD QT Gb VVlM\JlVl \" The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada Date r r Abstract Water use planning today necessitates an integrated approach that includes sustainability considerations. We rely upon our water resources to satisfy a lengthy list of needs yet we often mistreat this irreplaceable, vital resource. Members of society are acknowledging the situation and are increasingly expressing their interest in being involved in processes to address these issues. It is the planner's responsibility to respond with a method that is capable of involving the public in complex planning issues such water use planning. The identification and application of a suitable methodology can commence with the articulation of indicators of success. By being conscious of desired goals, the process necessary for their attainment is more readily identified. A study of existing literature indicates empowerment, fairness, trust and efficiency are regular indicators of success. Communicative facilitation, the product of unifying the fundamentals of communicative planning and effective facilitation, is a means of working toward the realization of these success indicators. These process components are both complemented and promoted through a collaborative effort. Both the process methodology and its application influence the likelihood of achieving the identified process success indicators. Analysis of a case study, in this instance the Coquitlam Buntzen Water Use Planning process, allows extrication of recommendations and caveats that are applicable not only to collaborative water use planning but also to complex planning processes in general. • A process should focus on reaching the best agreement possible. Allowing a range of levels of agreement while documenting points of disagreement is recommended. • A process's potential to contribute to the development of a positive precedent should be recognized. Every effort should be invested to maximize opportunities to improve levels of trust and perceptions of fairness since current processes affect future efforts. • Process facilitators should be adept in the role of facilitator, analyst, mediator and negotiator while practicing the principles of communicative planning. • It is difficult for a process to manage its schedule and budget to the satisfaction of all participants; however, the evaluation of efficiency is critical to assessment of overall process success. • To avoid confusion and frustration, it should be clearly established prior to process commencement whether a process involves the public generally, stakeholders or representatives. • Scope should be as broadly defined as possible. Although the level of complexity can be expected to increase, the benefits of an integrated approach as well as the frustrations associated with scope limitation support its expansion. Once boundaries are set, they should be explicitly articulated. As the world becomes in increasingly complex place, the planner is faced with the task of facilitating efforts for interests to work together to make good decisions through quality processes. Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed Table of Contents Abstract Table of Contents iii List of Tables vii List of Figures viii Acknowledgements ix 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Land Use Planning Within Watersheds 2 1.2 Definitions 3 1.3 Research Questions 4 1.4 Scope 6 1.5 Chapter Summary 6 2 ESTABLISHING THE LINK BETWEEN PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT AND WATER USE PLANNING 8 2.1 Water Use Planning 8 2.1.1 Integrated Water Management 9 2.1.2 Sustainability 11 2.2 Public Involvement 12 2.2.1 Process vs. Product 12 2.2.2 The Public-An Active Member of Society 12 2.2.3 Public Involvement- Benefits for Everyone 13 2.2.4 Necessary Process Components 14 2.2.5 Addressing Critiques of Public Involvement 15 2.2.6 A Taxonomy of Public Involvement 16 2.3 Success Indicators 18 2.3.1 Empowerment 18 2.3.2 Fairness 21 2.3.3 Trust 22 2.3.4 Efficiency 23 2.4 Success Indicators and Communicative Planning 25 2.4.1 Communicative Facilitation 25 2.5 Consensus 27 2.6 Chapter Summary 30 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed iii 3 FUNDAMENTALS OF COLLABORATION 31 3.1 A Response to Our Times 31 3.2 Appropriateness of Collaboration 31 3.3 Collaboration Expectations ; 32 3.4 Motivation to collaborate 32 3.5 Approaches to Collaborative Planning 33 3.5.1 Shared Vision 33 3.5.2 Conflict Resolution 34 3.6 Facilitating Collaboration 35 3.7 Implementation 36 3.8 Gray's Phases 36 3.8.1 Phase I: Problem Setting 36 3.8.2 Phase II: Direction Setting 38 3.8.3 Phase III: Implementation 39 3.9 Chapter Summary 40 4 CASE STUDY BACKGROUND 41 4.1 The Coquitlam System 42 4.1.1 The Coquitlam River - a Component of the Fraser System 42 4.1.2 Coquitlam River's Contribution to Hydro Power 43 4.1.3 Coquitlam River's Contribution to Water Supply 44 4.2 History 45 4.2.1 Impacts 47 4.3 What is a WUP? 49 4.4 Instigation of WUPs 49 4.4.1 The Ward Report 49 4.4.2 Existing Fish Legislation 50 4.4.3 Public Scrutiny 51 4.5 WUP Guidelines 52 4.6 Coquitlam Buntzen Water Use Plan (CBWUP) 53 4.6.1 Consultative Committee (CC) 54 4.6.2 First Nations 54 4.6.3 Dividing the CC into Smaller Groups 56 4.6.4 Facilitation 58 4.7 Chapter Summary 60 5 METHODOLOGY 61 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed iv 5.1 Application of a Qualitative Approach 61 5.2 Qualitative Analysis - As Applied to the CBWUP 62 5.2.1 Information Collection 62 5.2.2 Data interpretation 65 5.2.3 Methodological limitations 65 5.3 Other WUP Studies 66 5.4 Chapter Summary 67 6 STUDY OF THE PHASES OF COLLABORATION & FACILITATION 68 6.1 Context 68 6.1.1 Motivation to collaborate 68 6.2 Process 69 6.3 Phase I - Problem Setting 69 6.3.1 Common definition of the problem 69 6.3.2 Commitment to collaborate 71 6.3.3 Identification of stakeholders 74 6.3.4 Legitimacy of stakeholders 76 6.3.5 Convener characteristics 78 6.3.6 Identification of resources 79 6.4 Phase II - Direction Setting 81 6.4.1 Establishing ground rules 81 6.4.2 Agenda setting 83 6.4.3 Joint information search 84 6.4.4 Exploring options 87 6.4.5 Reaching agreement and closing the deal 88 6.5 Phase HI - Implementation 91 6.5.1 Dealing with constituencies 91 6.5.2 Building external support 93 6.5.3 Monitoring the agreement and ensuring compliance 94 6.6 Facilitation 95 6.6.1 Consultant perspective 95 6.6.2 Participant perspective 103 6.6.3 Keeping the context in mind 106 6.7 Findings 108 6.8 Chapter Summary Ill 7 ACHIEVEMENT OF SUCCESS INDICATORS 112 7.1 Success Indicators 112 7.2 Empowerment.... 112 7.3 Fairness 114 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed v 7.4 Trust 115 7.5 Efficiency 117 7.6 Cynicism 119 7.7 Findings 120 7.8 Chapter Summary 121 8 FINAL COMMENTS 123 8.1 Goal and Objectives Review 123 8.2 Extractable Lessons 124 8.3 Further Study 129 8.4 Implications for Planning 130 8.5 To Conclude 130 References 132 Appendix I: WUP Guidelines 139 Appendix II: Participant Details 141 Appendix III: Objectives 143 Appendix IV: Questions for Facilitators 145 Appendix V: Questions for Process Participants 147 Appendix VI: Issues for Resolution Outside the WUP 149 Appendix VII: Guiding Principles 150 Appendix VIII: Communication Process 152 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed vi List of Tables Table 1: Designs for Collaboration 34 Table 2: Active CC Members as of Summer 2001 54 Table 3: Differences Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research Approaches 61 Table 4: CBWUP Meeting Summary 63 Table 5: Respondent Coding System 63 Table 6: 7 Principles of Good Process 82 Table 7: Summary Evaluation Table of Collaboration Phases 109 Table 8: Summary Evaluation Table of Attainment of Success Indicators 121 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed vii List of Figures Figure 1: Hydrologic Cycle 9 Figure 2: Arnstein's Ladder 17 Figure 3: The Fraser Basin 41 Figure 4: Coquitlam Lake-An Aerial View 43 Figure 5: Path of Hydropower Generation 44 Figure 6: Lower Mainland Drinking Water Sources 45 Figure 7: Historical Summary 48 Figure 8: First Nations Traditional Lands 56 Figure 9: WUP Organization Chart 59 Figure 10: The Analysis Process 124 Collaborating for Success? Working Together in the Coquitlam Watershed viii Acknowledgement There are several individuals who deserve recognition for their contributions to this effort. Tony Dorcey and Tim McDaniels's commitment, during the past two years, to instilling an appreciation for theory and flow of logic, and goals and objectives have shaped not only this study but also my thinking.