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[chris gadsden]

Maybe the present government now will stop destroying rivers with the run of tke river projects, allowing way too much water to be taken from some Interior rivers that threaten coho stocks,and stop gravel removal from rivers like the Fraser River that destroy fish stocks and their habitat.

I am not holding our breath as it seems big business is more important over the environment that gets flushed down the toilet in the name of the almighty dollar. However now I read in the Vancouver Sun's article today low-flow toilets are part of this program so maybe that will help.

Of course most of this is not to take effect until 2012  and by then we may have a new government.


News Release

 

LIVING WATER SMART: A PLAN FOR WATER SUSTAINABILITY

 

VANCOUVER – More than 40 actions and targets in a new government-wide plan will help all sectors, communities and British Columbians keep the province’s water healthy and secure, now and in the future, Environment Minister Barry Penner announced on June 3.

 

“Water defines British Columbia and it is essential to our quality of life,” said Penner. “Living Water Smart: British Columbia’s Water Plan lays out the vision and steps needed to protect our rivers, lakes, streams and watersheds. This plan will make B.C. a leader in water stewardship, fits with our overarching strategy to protect the environment and positions us for continued success in the 21st century.”

 

Living Water Smart is a blueprint for cultural, environmental, industrial, community and agricultural change that will help safeguard the province’s water resources into the future. Drawing on a variety of policy measures, including planning, regulatory change, education, and incentives like economic instruments and rewards, the plan commits to new actions and builds on existing efforts to protect and keep B.C.’s water healthy and secure.

 

“We commend government for this strategic focus on water, a vital resource for B.C.’s growing agricultural sector and the farmers and ranchers who depend on a secure source of water to sustain production,” said Steve Thomson, executive director for the BC Agriculture Council.

 

Key actions include setting ambitious water efficiency and conservation targets, establishing flow requirements in legislation for ecosystems and species, establishing a maximum 40-year term for water licenses in areas of scarcity, regulating large groundwater withdrawals, and looking to safeguard and learn from First Nations’ traditional and cultural water uses.

 

The announcement took place at Musqueam Creek, where a wild salmon habitat restoration project is being led by the community-based, non-profit Musqueam Ecosystem Conservation Society (MECS). “As more British Columbians make water stewardship and conservation a part of their daily lives, we’ll be better able to preserve the diverse habitats and species of unique ecosystems like Musqueam Creek,” said Christina Nahanee, outreach and events co-ordinator for MECS.

 

B.C.’s economy and industry continue to grow, and its population is expected to increase by another 1.4 million people in the next 25 years. In some areas, like the Okanagan and Gulf Islands, seasonal water shortages are already challenging community water systems, and the fish and aquatic ecosystems that depend on these systems for survival. Climate change and its related effects, like the mountain pine beetle and changing water cycles, are also adding to the pressures on fresh waters. As a finite resource, the current rate of water use is not sustainable when population and industry growth – along with climate change – are considered.

 

“We’re interested in planning for long-term, balanced growth that will leave a legacy for the future – a strategy we see reflected in the Living Water Smart plan,” said Maureen Enser, executive director of the Urban Development Institute.

 

“Living Water Smart provides leadership that will help improve the way we build and protect communities, use our water resources and sustain our quality of life,” added Scott Veitch, president of the British Columbia Real Estate Association.

 

For more information on Living Water Smart and how to be a part of the solution, visit www.livingwatersmart.ca .

[chris gadsden]

Vancouver Sun article.

B.C. aims to cut water use
Government asks British Columbians to get serious about conservation
Larry Pynn, Vancouver Sun
Published: Wednesday, June 04, 2008
British Columbians at all levels are being asked to get serious about water use in the face of population growth and climate change, and to help meet a provincial target of improving water efficiency by one-third by 2020.

The Living Water Smart plan unveiled by the province Tuesday sets a wide range of goals that include mandatory low-flow toilets in new homes, the expansion of municipal water meters and the need for greater efficiency through improved farming practices such as irrigation.

"We know a change is upon us, and we have to prepare for that change," Environment Minister Barry Penner said in an interview. "We have to stop taking water for granted. I don't have a magic wand to create more."




The water plan even includes a requirement that school students get to know a local stream and assess its health as a way of connecting youths with the natural -- and not just technological -- world.

"I'm concerned about an increasing urban disconnect from nature," Penner said. "It's particularly acute for young people who get their mental and physical stimulation through artificial means such as video games."

The government expects B.C.'s population to increase by 1.4 million people over the next 25 years, putting added pressure on water resources already stressed by global warming.

The government blueprint for dealing with water issues includes fast-tracking green developments requiring provincial environmental approvals, recognizing water-flow requirements for ecosystems and species, and a Green Building Code requiring water conservation plumbing fixtures such as low-flow toilets.

Shane Simpson, the New Democratic Party's environment critic, said in response that most of the initiatives won't take effect until 2012 and do nothing to address environmental problems associated with hundreds of run-of-the-river independent power projects across the province.

He called for a moratorium on such projects and for regional planners to consider the cumulative impacts of such projects as well as considering the opinion of other water users and municipal governments.

B.C. Agriculture Council chair Garnet Etsell said he supports the plan's goal of ensuring farmers access to water while encouraging the sector to be more efficient. But he noted the plan largely sets out principles, and that he cannot render a final opinion on the document until he sees more details of how it will be implemented.

Mark Angelo, rivers chair of the Outdoor Recreation Council of B.C., said he hopes the plan can find a balance between the human and ecological needs of rivers.

Rivers such as the Coldwater near Merritt have routinely made the council's list of top-10 most endangered rivers due in large part to agriculture's excessive extraction of water.

Angelo also supports the report's potential for decommissioning dams to enhance certain watersheds, saying he supports removal of the McIntyre Dam on the Okanagan River to benefit salmon stocks.

Other highlights of the plan:

- $100 million for flood protection over 10 years to help communities manage flood losses.



 Working with the federal government to ensure the quality of drinking water in all aboriginal communities meets provincial standards by 2015.

- 50 per cent of new municipal water needs to be acquired through conservation by 2020.

- A partnership between industry and government to develop a water-efficiency labelling system for consumers.



Providing summer jobs for youth aged 16 to 22 to undertake stream restoration projects.

- Expanding British Columbia's hydrometric and other climate-related networks.

- Limiting all new licences to 40-year terms in areas where there is high demand and pressure on water.

To view the water plan, visit www.livingwatersmart.ca. For tips to reduce water use, www.waterbucket.ca.

[bentrod]

And this plan is different from the rest of the civilized world in what way?  Looks to me like a way to slap each other on the butt and give each other a raise. 

[clownfish]

While climate change does deserve some blame for the pine beetle problem, it isn't the only factor. Besides the cold of winter, one of the other main "enemies" of the pine beetle was forest fires. We have been doing such a good job of knocking down fires over the last several decades that the pine beetle has had ample opportunity to expand its range.

I first found out about the mountain pine beetle in the early '80's when I spent a few years living in the 100 Mile House area, and worked on some of the silvaculture programs that were operating in the forests around there. At that time it was already known that the beetle was expanding into areas that it had not previously been found, or at least not been a significant factor. There were programs that were setup to deal with the problem. One involved cruising stands of timber during the time when the beetles initially bore into the trees to lay their eggs, identifying and tagging trees that had been infested, and then returning during the fall/winter/spring and cutting down the trees and burning them before the next generation emerged. Another involved scent traps, and a third that I heard about involved an attempt to breed quantities of sterile males and females to be released in the hope of curbing their population expantion by having fertile males and females mating with the sterile ones and thereby producing no viable eggs. Most, or all, of these programs suffered from budget cuts by one or another of the governments that came to power after that time. Once again "we" are responsible for our own misfortune, due to the shortsightedness of our politicians. This is the sort of thing that never seems to get mentioned in any of the news coverage that I have encountered.

[troutbreath]

It's definitely a case of butt touching and saying were greener than the Green Party. Barry's already shown how much he doesn't care to make me think otherwise. Here at my government job there all abuzz about saving water and looking good in photos with captions about the "good" work they do. Then a few months from now it will be forgotton like long ago bowl movement.

[Nicole]

They're just getting us to cut down so they can give it to California...

Gordo and Arnold have been spending alot of time chatting lately.

Cheers,
Nicole

[coryandtrevor]

They're just getting us to cut down so they can give it to California...

Gordo and Arnold have been spending alot of time chatting lately.

Cheers,
Nicole

There is a near state of emergency in Cali right now. Arnie is complaining that efforts to control waterways by fish habitat proponents are partly the cause. They are looking at transporting water ( Canadian ) to the most heavily affected spots.

Maybe Vegas can go without the water from  the Colorado for a few months to share the water around a bit . Yeah right