2nd Announcement: Peer-Based Learning Will Help Local Governments Implement ‘Watershed Blueprints’ in BC

Register now for the “Course on the ISMP Course Correction”. Nov 9-10 at Surrey Arts Centre  

Conditions imposed by the BC Minister of Environment in Metro Vancouver provide a driver for a ‘course correction’ in the way Integrated Stormwater Management Plans (ISMPs) are developed. To fill a professional development need, the Partnership for Water Sustainability is spearheading a peer-based learning program. The centrepiece is a 2-day course titled ISMP Course Correction: Achieve More with Less. The City of Surrey will host the first course on November 9-10.

“The 2-day course will benefit all those who are involved in land use planning, land development and municipal infrastructure. We will show how to integrate the site with the watershed and the stream. The course has eight modules. These are building blocks to create a ‘watershed blueprint’. We will guide participants through the stages and steps in developing a plan that is balanced, landscape-based and financially sustainable,” states Carrie Baron, Surrey’s Drainage and Environment Manager.

“We will provide examples from around Metro Vancouver and from the Capital Region; we will illustrate how sharing and learning from each other allows municipalities to achieve more with less; and we will demonstrate how to apply the right tools. Integration is the KEY MESSAGE – integration with the ecosystem, recreation, land use and community groups. Use effective green infrastructure, lighten the ‘water footprint’, and protect stream health,” concludes Carrie Baron.

CREATE A WATERSHED BLUEPRINT: "An ISMP is a potentially powerful tool. It can influence other municipal processes for the better. It can generate the blueprint for truly integrated and coordinated action at a watershed scale," adds Richard Boase, Vice-President of the Partnership for Water Sustainabilty. 

"Participants will learn from those with experience about methodologies and tools that will help them: 1) get the watershed vision right; 2) establish achievable performance targets; 3) create an affordable watershed blueprint; and, 4) integrate with other processes and/or plans to incrementally implement the watershed blueprint over decades."

TO REGISTER: Click on http://www.civicinfo.bc.ca/event/ISMPCourseCorrection.asp

TO LEARN MORE: To access the ISMP Course Correction 'homepage' on the Water Bucket website and learn more about the program design, click here.  

News Release #2011-41

September 27, 2011