Wednesday January 19, 2022 | VICTORIA, BC [Updated 3 pm]
by Mary P Brooke, B.Sc. | Island Social Trends
The CRD Regional Water Supply Commission (RWSC) has 22 members. Today they re-elected their Chair and Vice-Chair for another year.
City of Langford Councillor Lillian Szpak has been re-elected as RWSC Chair for the second consecutive year. District of Highlands Councillor Gord Baird has been re-elected as RWSC Vice-Chair.
Szpak is serving her sixth term as a Langford councillor, where she has long been the chair of the Protective Services Committee. Baird is serving his second term as a District of Highlands councillor, with a high-profile interest in environmental issues.
Priorities for 2022:
Spzak thanked the RWSC members for their hard work and dedication and outlined her priorities for 2022. That includes protecting and effectively managing the region’s water supply “to ensure abundant, clean drinking water for years to come”, she was quoted in a CRD news release today.
“We are fortunate to have the best drinking water in the world,” said Szpak.
She said that the RWSC focus will be to evaluate climate change impacts on the CRD’s water supply area and to set out the long-term water supply plan for the coming decades. In 2022, CRD will be preparing for an update to the Regional Water Supply Strategic Plan.
The CRD general manager’s verbal report today covered weather events and impacts, a COVID-19 update, and a Water Advisory Committee Appointments update.
The commission looked at 2022 Greater Victoria Water Supply Area Mining Access Requests, a summary of recommendations from other water commissions, and the ongoing CRD Water Watch Report.
Areas of focus:
The Regional Water Supply Commission undertakes significant work to advance the priorities and areas of focus as identified in the Regional Water Supply Strategic Plan.
Today those were itemized as drinking water quality, population growth, climate change, education and engagement, drinking water transmission, capital investments and management of the water supply area.
There is presently a 2050 planning horizon. The first Strategic Plan for Regional Water Management was completed in 1999. The CRD’s website says the plan was updated in 2004, 2012 and 2017, to focus on water quality and watershed protection, options for demand management considering future service populations, and infrastructure priorities.
Committee members:
Members of the Regional Water Supply Commission are: G. Baird; N. Chambers; Z. De Vries; S. Dubow; S. Duncan; C. Graham; K. Harper; M. Hicks; B. Isitt; K. Kahakauwila; G. Logan; J. Loveday; R. Mersereau; T. Morrison; J. Rogers; T. St-Pierre; L. Szpak; C. Stock; N. Taylor; G. Young; R. Wade; E. Wood Zhelka. Their next meeting is on February 16, 2022.
Municipal Election 2022:
All CRD directors are elected by municipalities and electoral areas in the Greater Victoria area, of which there are 13.
The next BC-wide municipal election is later this year, on October 15, 2022.
Councillors now serve for a four-year term (prior to 2018 the term was three years).
===== RELATED:
CRD digs into final year before 2022 municipal elections (November 10, 2021)
Everyone encouraged to conserve water during summer on Vancouver Island (July 11, 2021)
CRD water chlorination top-up continues past January 15 (January 21, 2021)
Water chlorination topped up in Greater Victoria during system maintenance (December 30, 2020)
Beaches re-opened after core area wastewater discharged from outfall (April 24, 2020)
Final contract awarded for CRD wastewater treatment project (January 9, 2020)