Jason Unger, Staff Counsel October 29 th, 2013 Synergy Alberta Conference

Transcription

1 Jason Unger, Staff Counsel October 29 th, 2013 Synergy Alberta Conference

2 Outline The Environmental Law Centre The fluid dynamics State and management The legal dynamics Basics of water management laws and policy Barriers and moving forward

3 About the ELC Mission: To ensure that Alberta s laws, policies and legal processes sustain a healthy environment for future generations Public Programs Information and referral Community outreach Law reform

4 The Fluid Jamie Kormarnicki / Postmedia News - Edmonton Journal, Shaughn Butts ehistoric+giants/ /story.html Cows and Fish, What is riparian

5 Fluid management Constructed Treatment Wetlands, Olds College, Canadian Geographic, agazine/nd05/indepth/environment.as p Wet areas mapping,unb /wet-areas-mapping/new-brunswick/

6 Fluid environmental management Water Quantity Cause Surface water Cumulative & acute effects Water Quality Monitoring CEM management response Ground water

7 The Cumulative Context Alberta Environment, River Water Quality Sub Index ( ) library/7683.pdf

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9 Trophic State of Alberta Lakes brary/8089.pdf

10 Uncertainty, climate and supplies

11 Uncertainty, climate and supplies Historical water levels for closed-basin prairie lakes (from van der Kamp and Keir, 2005; van der Kamp et al., 2006) cited in Climate Change Impacts on Canada s Prairie Provinces: A Summary of our State of Knowledge

12 The impact of climate change on the glaciers of the Canadian Rocky Mountain eastern slopes and implications for water resource-related adaptation in the Canadian prairies "Phase I" - Headwaters of the North Saskatchewan River Basin Climate Change Action Fund - Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative PARC Project P55 M.N. Demuth 1 and A. Pietroniro 2

13 Fluid resource knowledge Nature Geoscience Ecohydrolgic separation of water between trees and streams in a Mediterranean climate (J. Renée Brooks et al. 2009) and Prof. Jeff Mcdonnell (University of Oregon) (presentation at University of Alberta, 2011)

14 Legal dynamics water quality EPEA MGA WA ALSA Nonpoint Point source Water Quality PLA FA AOPA Current laws Coverage Goal EIAs, BMPs, Mitigation, Policies, Programs

15 A planning slurry Lake management plans? Municipal Plans (bylaws) Regional plans (EMF) Watershed plans Source water protection plans Implementers Water management

16 Regional Plans the new dynamic Day to day decisions of municipalities and government ALSA amends other acts Decisions, bylaws and statutory plans must comply with Regional Plan Non-compliance Existing appeal processes Complaint to LUS Commissioner

17 Plans and cumulative effects Environmental Management Frameworks surface water and air quality Framework approach Outcome/results based regulation Adaptive Linked to regional planning process Lower Athabasca Regional Surface Water Quality Management Framework For The Lower Athabasca River uality_final.pdf

18 EMF responses Management directions to those contributing Options BMP, economic instruments, approval amendments, etc. Assessment and actions based on longer term adverse trends (discretion to determine when a trigger or limit is exceeded) General approach is limited Acute (potentially repeated) impacts may still occur A variety of substances not covered

19 Dynamics of engagement Directly & adversely affected Registered owner of land Legal rights Advisory Watershed planning Regional plan consultations Municipal planning Landowner/operator Watershed stewardship group Municipality GOA Implementer

20 Accountability for environmental outcomes Point sources Municipal wastewater Reaching or exceeding threshold Non-point sources Diversions and reduced flow Regulatory response required Sector based reductions? Pro-rata? Grandfathered? Proven contribution? Anthropogenic vs. natural?

21 Opposing dynamics FITFIR (Prior Allocation) Instream Flows EMF thresholds/triggers Development pressures

22 The power dynamic Existing legal rights Water rights Versus aspirations BMPs Existing activities with existing impacts Watershed plans Property rights Regional plans strategic and implementation objectives

23 The law: inherently not dynamic The fluid Land - water connection Dynamic in state and volume Management and engineering difficult Supply often limiting (particularly when one considers ecosystem needs) Legal Quantity laws fail to recognize it as dynamic Land-water interface is only beginning to be quantified and recognized (e.g. EMF) Approvals remain in silos Acute and localized impacts must be addressed loading issues must be addressed

24 Provincial approach The whirlpool of management New tools are in place What do they mean for activities on the landscape? What do they mean for environmental assurance?

25 Key messages Knowledge and monitoring requirements to manage cumulative effects are significant A pollution reduction framework is needed to: Revisit past activities (and acute impacts) Manage cumulative impacts into the fuure Costs of implementation must be forecast and met e.g. Chesapeake Bay TMDL estimated over $9.5 billion in urban stormwater costs Chesapeake Bay TMDL and Virginia Watershed Implementation Plan (Hampton Roads Planning Commission) stormwater reductions ($679M annually)

26 Recommendations moving forward Clarify budget for monitoring and assessment Identify tools and financial framework for restoration programming Ensure tools are properly resourced (from programs to enforcement) >#tools = >#$? Legislate enabling framework to ensure budgets

27 Recommendations moving forward A Pollution Reduction Framework Past decisions need to be addressed ID barriers to effective water management in existing authorizations Revisit authorizations which are permitting acute impacts

28 Recommendations moving forward A Pollution Reduction Framework Create clear implementation ladder for management and regulatory responses Conduct cost/benefit of management actions now (to prioritize actions) Create program for educating implementers on what may or will be needed down the road. Timelines Budget Planning and programs

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