Smart Growth and Smart Water Use in the Okanagan
A number of projects funded by the Gordon Foundation are focused in and around the small south Okanagan town of Oliver, BC, known as the "Wine Capital of Canada". Since 2005, Smart Growth BC has been working with local stakeholders to develop and implement an innovative "smart growth" Concept Plan, as part of their Smart Growth on the Ground project. The goal of the project is to help BC communities prepare more sustainable community plans that incorporate the principles of smart growth. In Oliver, the project is a partnership of Smart Growth BC, the Real Estate Institute of BC, the Design Centre for Sustainability at UBC, the Town of Oliver, and the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen.
Using surveys, a learning event and a series of workshops, the Smart Growth on the Ground team identified water issues that needed to be addressed in the land use planning process. Through a charrette - an intense design workshop - stakeholders developed recommendations to achieve more sustainable land use planning in the Oliver area. Key water-related recommendations included:
- the concept of "thickening" - gradually increasing residential density - to conserve water use;
- the use of drought tolerant plants for landscaping;
- enhanced residential water conservation including the use of reclaimed water; and
- the use of green infrastructure to deal with rainwater runoff.
The resulting Concept Plan will be reviewed by Town and Regional District staff in the fall of 2006. For more information, go to: www.sgog.bc.ca/greateroliver.
The POLIS Project on Ecological Governance contributed to the Smart Growth on the Ground project in Oliver, BC by presenting information on water demand management at workshops and co-authoring (with the Design Centre for Sustainability) a Foundation Research Bulletin on Water Conservation.
Hans Schreier from UBC is doing innovative work on the concept of "virtual water", which is the water that is needed to produce food or a commodity. Most staple crops require about 1000 L of water to produce 1 kg of grain. Rice requires two to three times this amount, and meat production takes four to thirty times this amount. In a time when some regions are experiencing water scarcity and with the threat of climate change, we have the opportunity to reorganize how and where food is produced to better reflect the amount of water available. Schreier is currently studying two rapidly growing agro-climatic regions in BC - the Okanagan Basin and the Lower Fraser Valley - to determine how much water is used for food production, how much of this is exported from each basin, and how much virtual water is imported. The Okanagan Basin is one of the driest basins in Canada, yet it is a net exporter of food. With rapid growth in both population and agricultural production, the basin is under pressure because almost all the surface water resources are fully allocated. In contrast, the Lower Fraser Valley is one of the wettest areas in Canada and has the capacity to grow more water intensive foods and increase its exports of virtual water.
West Coast Environmental Law will also be working with the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen and other local governments in the region to support the legal implementation of their smart growth plan and regional growth strategy. This is part of a 2-year "Green Infrastructure" project begun in April 2006 with support from the Foundation which will include two other main components:
- Production of a Green Infrastructure Guide providing tailored guidance material on green infrastructure tools and highlight recent innovations.
- Promoting Green Building development and ensuring local governments are equipped to facilitate it.