Canadians are among the world’s top water guzzlers, with each person using enough water, on average, to fill almost 13,000 bathtubs each year, and pay little for the privilege. For example, in B.C., oil and gas companies pay pennies on the dollar compared to regular users for their water usage.

But just how healthy are the lakes, rivers, and streams in B.C. that supply us with drinking water and H2O for industrial uses such as fracking?

No one really knows, according to a report recently released by the Real Estate Foundation of B.C.

The foundation aimed to paint a picture of how B.C.’s freshwater ecosystems are faring against a range of threats, including pollution, climate change, agricultural runoff, and oil and gas development.

Instead, researchers were thwarted by a dearth of critical data, said Real Estate Foundation CEO Jack Wong.

“The data was unavailable, out of date or hard to access,” Wong told DeSmog Canada. “We need good data to make good decisions. How do you respond to threats if you don’t have proper data?”

The foundation’s 44-page report, Murky Waters, said the combined effects from agriculture, forestry, fracking and mining activities have shaken public confidence in the health of B.C.’s freshwater ecosystems, widely regarded (according to the foundation’s survey results) as the province’s “most precious resource.”

It cited the 2014 environmental disaster at Imperial Metal’s Mount Polley mine — where a massive tailings pond impounding toxic wastewater failed, resulting an uncontrolled spill of sludge and mine waste into nearby waterways — as one example.

“With so much stress, it is essential to have sufficient and accessible water health data to indicate the extent of damage these threats are causing,” said the report, which comes as worldwide concerns about freshwater scarcity and pollution heighten.

Oliver Brandes, co-director of the University of Victoria’s POLIS Project on Ecological Governance, said the historic abundance of fresh water in B.C. has created a sense of complacency.

“We all know that water is critically important, but water has not been front of mind for most people.”

The double whammy of climate change and expanding industrial development, in tandem with other threats, means “water is just more important now,” said Brandes, an advisor and early reviewer for the Murky Waters report.

“This report further underscores that we need to revitalize our water agenda, but that we don’t know enough to manage it really well. This is yet another symptom of the conundrum.”

Almost 90 per cent of British Columbians favour stricter rules and stands for water protection, while 87 per cent believe communities should have the right to approve or reject decisions that affect their fresh water, according to polling done by the foundation.

The report urged the B.C. government to improve data collection, noting that the government has already committed to reporting on lake eutrophication — when dissolved nutrients like nitrogen or phosphorous create algae blooms, deplete fish and result in poor water quality in 2018.

It also zeroed in on three actions it says the provincial government can take right away to protect B.C.’s watersheds.

B.C. Government Failing to Keep Data on #Freshwater Resources Amid #Fracking, #Forestry Frenzy: Report https://t.co/oPJypRv3vh #bcpoli @POLISWater

— DeSmog Canada (@DeSmogCanada) November 21, 2017

Three Recommendations to Update B.C.’s Water Usage Laws

B.C., for instance, charges natural gas companies and other industries considerably less than other provinces do for water fees and rentals.

Companies fracking for gas pay only a token amount for water they withdraw under long-term water licenses — $6.08 for enough water to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool, according to the B.C.’s government’s latest figures.

If industrial users were buying that water privately, they might pay as much as $11,250, according to a 2013 report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the POLIS project.

Quebec charges up to $70 for that same amount of water, while Nova Scotia bills users up to $140, said the report, which called for an accurate assessment of water fees and rentals in B.C.

One single Progress Energy fracking job in B.C.’s northeast in 2015 used 160,000 cubic metres of public water, enough to fill 64 Olympic-sized swimming pools. By current prices, that would cost less than $400.

The real estate foundation also wants the B.C. government to legislate protection for “environmental flows” — the amount of water required by a stream or river to ensure sufficient habitat for fish and healthy ecosystems.

Environmental flows cannot be legally enforced right now in B.C., and decisions to protect water levels for fish can be challenged at the Environmental Appeal Board.

And, thirdly, the foundation said B.C. must renew its freshwater policy, governed by the 2016 Water Sustainability Act.

Brandes said the Water Sustainability Act initiative, which aims to improve water management and decision-making in B.C., is only partly complete. Most of the act’s important components, such as watershed planning and a strong regime to protect ecological flows, have yet to be implemented, he pointed out.

In its election campaign platform, the B.C. NDP pledged to review the Act “to ensure that high volume water users are paying for access fairly, and that drinking water sources are protected.”

Indigenous Co-governance a Possible Solution

The foundation promotes what it calls a “shared stewardship ethic” for freshwater ecosystems, noting that, in its absence, “Communities might feel they have to choose between clean water and resource extraction jobs instead of supporting both clean water and the economy.”

In a September report, Brandes and other researchers at the POLIS Sustainability Project and UVic’s Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources proposed that B.C. manage water resources through a co-governance model with Indigenous communities based on a principle of collaborative consent.

The real estate foundation, too, supports the concept of Indigenous co-governance for effective land and resource decision-making on freshwater resources.

Murky Waters also cited research from the World Wildlife Fund Canada showing data deficiencies for some of the 26 sub-watersheds in B.C. — including the Lower Fraser and the Thompson — in the categories of overall health, state of water flow, water quality, or suitability for fish. When data did exist, it was only for rivers and streams, and not for lakes or wetlands.

Most sub-watersheds in B.C., particularly in the south of the province, face multiple threats, according to the wildlife fund.

“These mounting threats could cause a watershed currently in good health to rapidly deteriorate,” noted the real estate foundation report.

Improved and accessible data sets are necessary to determine if strategies to reduce threats are working, lest efforts to protect freshwater ecosystems become “a guessing game,” the foundation said.

In an emailed statement, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy said it appreciated the real estate foundation’s report, which it is reviewing in greater detail.

A number of the report’s recommendations, including on water sustainability plans and water governance, will be addressed over the next several years through implementation of the new Water Sustainability Act, the ministry said, noting that “protecting healthy freshwater ecosystems is essential to the quality of life of British Columbians and a strong economy.”

Image: Lake Capilano, B.C. Photo: Jason Mrachina via Flickr

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Congestion and gridlock are bad for business and bad for communities, finds a new study by the C.D. Howe Institute.

When people are stuck in traffic — or even faced with the prospect of being stuck — they are prevented from engaging with their community and this means less face-to-face interaction and less resulting economic benefits, the study finds.

“When congestion causes people to not travel it stifles the key benefits of living in a city: learning face-to-face, finding better jobs and sharing services of infrastructure,” report author Benjamin Dachis writes.

“On top of congestion due to slower travel, these wider, hidden costs of congestion are between $500 million and $1.2 billion per year for the Metro Vancouver area.”

The study, written in collaboration with Clean Energy Canada and the B.C. Real Estate Foundation, finds the economic benefits of a ‘yes’ vote in the upcoming transit referendum outweigh the cost of the new tax associated with the Mayors’ Council plan.

The plan includes a new 0.5-per-cent sales tax called the Metro Vancouver Congestion Tax. Funds from the tax would enable a 10-year transit overhaul which includes major service increases and extended routes to all transit systems, extending the Skytrain line to Langley, rebuilding the Pattullo bridge and rapid transit for the Broadway corridor.

A province-wide mail-in vote will take place over a ten-week period from March 16 to May 29.

The Better Transit and Transportation argues the plan will cut congestion by 20 per cent, shorten commute times by up to 30 minutes each day and provide 70 per cent of Metro Vancouver residents with more frequent transit service.

The coalition represents more than 90 organizations, including the Vancouver Board of Trade, Unifor and the David Suzuki Foundation, and calls itself the largest and most diverse coalition in B.C.’s history.

“People from all walks of life know that we cannot afford to stand by as congestion worsens throughout the region,” Vancouver Board of Trade president and CEO Iain Black recently said. “Gridlock is costing our economy dearly and we must dramatically improve the movement of goods, services and people if we want to remain competitive.”

Although nearly all local municipal leaders support the Mayors’ Council Plan, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation has been a vocal critic of the plan. Jordan Bateman, spokesman for the federation, was recently called TransLink’s “biggest hater” in The Tyee for his leadership role in the ‘no’ campaign.

Gordon Price, director of the City Program at Simon Fraser University, told The Tyee Bateman’s strategy is a “great dupe” designed to leverage public acrimony towards TransLink in his effort to secure a ‘no’ vote.

“It’s the brilliance of Bateman’s meme,” Price told The Tyee. “How do you get people, even a bus rider, to vote against their best interests?”

Bateman has been highly successful in stirring up the TransLink controversy by calling attention to the transportation provider’s internal scandals.

Supporters of the ‘yes’ campaign have argued that a vote for better transit should not be mistaken as a vote for TransLink.

“A small group of people want you to believe the referendum is your opportunity to voice concerns over how TransLink is governed,” writes Steve Kux, communications and research specialist with the David Suzuki Foundation. “That is not accurate.”

Instead, Kux argues, the vote is for “specific transportation improvements.” He adds that financing for those improvements will be reviewed by independent, third-party auditors to “ensure that the money goes to these improvements, not into TransLink in general.”

The new study from the C.D. Howe Institute cuts through the anti-tax criticism of the plan by highlighting the cost neutrality of the tax, given the relationship between mobility and wealth generation.   

“Cities generate connections, connections generate ideas, and ideas generate business — and smooth-flowing transportation makes it all happen,” said Merran Smith, executive director of Clean Energy Canada.

“Metro Vancouver is a thriving multicultural metropolis, and needs a transit system to match,” Smith added. “This research shows that the Mayors’ Council proposal creates financial and personal benefits that enrich everyone. Investing in transportation is good for drivers, cyclists and transit users alike.”

Image Credit: Valentina via Flickr

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