The Regional District of Nanaimo’s Drinking Water and Watershed Protection Program (DWWP) has been recognized for applying new ways of thinking to the water industry.
The Environmental Operators Certification Program (EOCP)’s Innovation Award for 2020 was presented to the RDN virtually at the annual EOCP conference on Sept. 16.
“We are honoured that the EOCP committee was unanimous in its decision to present the Innovation Award to the RDN. The DWWP Program has excelled at coordinating efforts between the many water providers in the region, united by the common goal of water sustainability,” said RDN Chair Ian Thorpe.
The program includes providing public outreach; educational resources; rebates in support of water conservation; offering professional development and networking for small water system operators and collecting data to support regional studies to better understand the watersheds that provide community drinking water.
The program has enabled and facilitated high levels of collaboration across the water operators and purveyors in the region, as well as within the community and senior government, according to the RDN.
The key innovation has been streamlining communications across agencies and using watershed boundaries as a lens to implement sustainable and collaborative water management in the region, according to the RDN.
