Invasive plants targeted in regional district strategy
By Timothy Schafer
Invasive plants in the Central Kootenay are on the endangered species list.
The regional district has approved funding for the creation of a regional strategy for invasive species management.
With the $10,000 in money from the Regional District of Central Kootenay board of directors the Central Kootenay Invasive Species Society (CKISS) is expected to address invasive species management and prevention in the regional district.
The formulation of the CKISS guiding document will fulfill the purpose of implementing an invasive species program at regional district properties, including resource recovery facilities, fire halls, water treatment plants, recreation complexes, offices and parks.
The document will provide guidelines for managing the areas of the regional district’s lands, buildings and facilities, identifying stakeholders and budget requirements.
Despite its considerable land holdings, the regional district did not have a prior invasive species strategy.
“Invasive species also have a significant impact on ecosystem health, and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers them one of the greatest threats to biodiversity globally,” noted a report to the board from Paris Marshall Smith, RDCK sustainability coordinator.
It was further noted that invasive species had the potential to affect the economic and environmental potential of regional district communities, impacting areas such as tourism, agriculture and property values.
The strategy will include four facets: identifying stakeholders; identifying strategies and procedures; defining staff requirements; and clarifying budgetary requirements and funding models.
In addition, the strategy will include a communications strategy for both internal and external stakeholders.
Moratorium on acquisitions of water and wastewater systems
The moratorium will continue on the regional district’s acquisitions of water and wastewater systems until later this year.
The regional district board voted to extend the moratorium on the intake of acquisition applications until June, with the notion to be dealt with at the May board meeting.
The current water systems acquisition policy for the regional district allows for community advisory committees to be established for local input, but not commissions.
In 2012 a moratorium was enacted on new water systems acquisitions until the questions regarding staff capacity, funding and governance issues within the environmental services department were made before additional water systems were brought onboard.
Seven years later the moratorium was renewed with the promise of a forthcoming staff report on the key issues.
The issues include:
- regional district exposure to risks by delegation of water governance responsibilities to “unelected, unaccountable and unqualified” commission members;
- considerations such as climate change, recent case law, regulatory changes and asset management and financial sustainability;
- the role of local community input into decision making for small water systems;
- the potential for administrative inefficiencies and operational dysfunction with the commission governance model; and
- the opportunity under a new governance model to allow limited staff resources to be focused on technical and operational matters.
— Source: Regional District of Central Kootenay
Currently, the regional district operates 20 water systems, including eight governed by commissions of which six deal with water services only.
According to a staff report, many of the commissions were established over three decades ago and have seen “few changes in governance despite significant changes having occurred within water service operations.”
Of the nine water systems without a formal public input body all governmental responsibilities lie with the regional district board. With commissions, some responsibilities are delegated, but the RDCK board is accountable for all decisions made.
“The commission governance model creates the potential for the board to ratify commission decisions without key information being passed along,” the staff report read.
Once the outstanding questions that have arisen around governance of the regional district water systems have been resolved, the moratorium could be lifted and enable qualified applicant water systems to join the RDCK water services.
