Gabriola LTC Special Meeting Agenda

Extracted text (beginning)

Gabriola Island Local Trust Committee
Special Meeting Agenda
 

Date:November 28, 2023
Time:2:30 pm
Location:Electronic Meeting
Pages
1.CALL TO ORDER
2:30 PM - 2:35 PM
“Please note, the order of agenda items may be modified during the meeting. Times are
provided for convenience only and are subject to change.”
2.APPROVAL OF AGENDA
3.BUSINESS ITEMS
2:35 PM - 4:00 PM
3.1Major Project: Gabriola Visioning Engagement Process and Water Balance
Assessments
2 - 6
4.ADJOURNMENT
4:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Islands Trust Briefing Page 1 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
To: Regional Planning Committee  For the Meeting of: November 15, 2023 
     
From: William Shulba, P.Geo. 
Senior Freshwater Specialist 
 Date Prepared: November 7, 2023 
     
SUBJECT: Island Trust Area Water Balance Assessment 
 
 
PURPOSE  
The purpose of this briefing is to provide information on water balance assessments in the Islands Trust 
Area. Provided in this briefing is a background, a conceptual methodology, comment on cost, regulatory 
considerations, and the relevancy to the Islands Trust Freshwater Sustainability Strategy.  
BACKGROUND 
Water resources are natural assets of the Islands Trust Area primarily on privately managed lands such as 
rural residential areas, agricultural operations, and privately managed forest lands.   
The Islands Trust Policy Statement identifies that islands in the Trust Area should be self-sufficient in their 
supply  of  freshwater. Directive  policies indicate  that neither density  nor  intensity  of  land  use may  be 
increased  in  areas  which  are known  to have  a  problem  with  the  quality  or  quantity  of  the  supply  of 
freshwater.  Water quality is to be maintained, and existing, anticipated and seasonal demands for water 
must be considered and allowed for.  
Water balance (also known as water budgets or water availability assessments) are an accounting of the 
rates of water movement and the change in water storage in all or parts of the atmosphere, land surface, 
and subsurface.  Water  balance  is  an essential  analysis to  evaluate  the  distribution, availability,  and 
sustainability of water resources. These analyses are used in water resource management, drought/flood 
preparedness,  infrastructure  planning,  groundwater  management,  agricultural  planning,  watershed 
conservation,  land-use  planning,  climate  change  adaptation,  regulatory  compliance,  political  decision 
support, and education.  
The  Islands  Trust  has  been  involved  in water balance focused  projects  directly  and  as  external  project 
members. Local trust committees in the southern gulf islands supported regional groundwater availability 
assessments in 2021.  Similar projects in the Islands Trust Area were conducted by the Province in a Water 
Science Series No.2019-01 “Aquifer Mapping and Monthly Groundwater Budget Analysis for Aquifers on 
Salt Spring Island”, by the Capital Regional District “Lake Weston Water Availability and Climate Change 
Ass

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