WC141 MarApr 2025 - Magazine - Page 27
DRINKING WATER
Strengthening Water Resilience
Engineers and Geoscientists BC’s award-winning guidelines help
communities manage water risks more e昀昀ectively.
BY CHARLIE EVANS
NGINEERS AND GEOSCIENTISTS BC
took home the Water Canada Drinking Water
Award for their Professional Practice Guidelines on the Preparation of One Water System
Risk Management Plans in British Columbia.
Their holistic approach to water management
addresses both technical and systemic risks and has
involved provincial ministries, municipalities, health
authorities, Indigenous organizations, and nonprofits, ensuring alignment with diverse water supply
systems and provincial water management.
Engineers and Geoscientists BC is the professional
regulatory body for engineers and geoscientists in
BC. Their primary mandate is to protect the public
interest, respecting the practice of professional
engineering and geoscience. “We establish, monitor
and enforce standards for professional practice,”
explains Harshan Radhakrishnan, Manager, Climate
Change and Sustainability Initiatives for Engineers
and Geoscientists BC.
Working with the BC Ministry of Health
highlighted critical water management challenges,
particularly in small water systems governance.
“There was a suggestion to develop a professional
model for the oversight of water systems,” says
Radhakrishnan. The ministry proposed that
Engineers and Geoscientists BC explore professional
practice guidelines to define the role for engineers
and geoscientists in overseeing water and wastewater
management.
E
Engineers and Geoscientists BC
Charlie Evans is the
Associate Editor of
Water Canada.
WAT E R C A N A D A . N E T
Stormwater
Source Water
Wastewater
Treatment
and Reuse
Water
Treatment
Our
Water
Systems
Wastewater
Collection
Water
Distribution
The One Water System—from source to tap and sink to watershed.
“This evolved over time to enable a greater
understanding that it is not just engineers and
geoscientists that get engaged in water management
issues,” says Radhakrishnan. “While we play a large
part in the design, regulatory compliance, operations
management, and all extents of water management,
we’re not the only ones actually accountable.” With
funding and support from the BC Ministry of Health,
Engineers and Geoscientists BC developed a planning
guide that supports local governments and Indigenous
nations with applying a One Water lens to water
management.
“The guidelines were designed to understand water
system risks from a system level. We often see risks
to environmental and public health across many
jurisdictions when we see those high level systems not
always functioning optimally,” says Aline Bennett,
Senior Manager, Climate Risk & Resilience for WSP.
WATER C AN ADA • M ARCH/APRIL 2025
27
