Fresh Water on the Trust Area Islands

Clean water plays a crucial role in the biological processes of living organisms and without it we and other living things cannot survive.

Key Issues

  • Drilled wells drawing groundwater from aquifers are the primary water source on most Trust Area islands. These islands are not like urban areas such as metro Vancouver which have large uninhabited nearby watershed areas as a primary water source. Islands have a finite land base, and each island is its own watershed or watersheds. The amount of groundwater available is dependent on the percentage of total rainfall entering the aquifer and the volume of water extracted for residential and commercial purposes that exceed the recharge1 rate of the aquifer. An island’s water supply is a key factor in determining the carrying capacity2 of an island.
  • In addition to population growth, climate change has impacted the amount of water available due to increasing periods of drought and variable weather patterns.
  • As development increases so too does the potential for contamination of groundwater and surface waters from septic system discharges, use/spills of hazardous chemicals and saltwater intrusion,3 the latter of which, may occur because of over-extraction from wells.
  • Deforestation4 and loss of a forest’s understory has also impacted the quality and quantity of water. Forests play a regulatory role in controlling erosion, the rate of infiltration, evaporation and filtering out sediment and pollutants.
How Can the Islands Trust Better Protect Groundwater?
Trust Policy Statement

The Islands Trust Policy Statement (TPS) has two important water policies that serve to protect the quantity and quality of groundwater. These policies direct local trust committees to be self-sufficient in their water supply, and that development does not occur in areas with known water issues.

Local Trust Committees (LTCs) need to apply these two policies more rigorously when considering development applications so fresh water remains a viable resource for people and the natural environment.

Development Permit Areas

Environmental Development Permit Areas (DPAs)5 are a regulatory tool under the Local Government Act that LTCs can use. For example, an environmental DPA could require the retention of adequate forest cover for higher elevation watershed groundwater recharge areas.

Decision-Making Considerations Related to Environmental Protection

LTCs could

  1. apply the precautionary principle6 more rigorously,
  2. ensure that the cumulative impacts7 of developments are considered, and
  3. determine their island’s carrying capacity.8
Observations
  • OCPs for seven (7) local Trust areas refer to the use of the precautionary principle in relation to water supply, but the TPS makes no reference to this principle.
  • TPS Trust Council Commitment section 3.1.1 states planning must account for the cumulative effects of existing and proposed developments, but this concept is not included in any Directive for LTCs, and
  • OCPs do not currently reference the concept of “carrying capacity,” yet the TPS definition of “sustainable communities”9 does make reference to it.

There does not appear to be much of a desire by Trust Council and LTCs to incorporate or use these environmental protection measures. But despite any omission of a measure in the TPS, an LTC can still incorporate it in their bylaws as is the case for the precautionary principle. How diligent these OCP measures are actually applied is not known.

Alternative Sources

Some islands have lakes as sources of potable water. Residents can also collect and store rainfall as a main or back-up water source and reduce the draw on island aquifers.

The purchase of bulk water from off-land sources is increasing but runs contrary to the TPS policy of water self-sufficiency on an island. It is a significant indicator of overdevelopment on an island. For example, between May and Oct 2021, about 9,000,000 litres of bulk water were purchased from Vancouver Island sources by Gabriola Island residents and businesses.

Conclusion

The trust area aquifers on some islands are in decline due to increased population and climate change. While the above recommendations refer mainly to actions of the Islands Trust, residents also have a role in ensuring fresh water remains a viable resource. It can be done; it takes commitment by all to do so.

Sources
  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundwater_recharge
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrying_capacity
  3. https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/saltwater-intrusion
  4. https://www.wri.org/insights/3-surprising-ways-water-depends-healthy-forests
  5. https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/local-governments/planning-land-use/land-useregulation/development-permit-areas
  6. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/canadian-environmental-protection-actregistry/publications/guide-to-understanding/chapter-3.html
  7. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/cumulative-effects.html
  8. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2020.579838/full
  9. Islands Trust Council Bylaw NO. 17; Schedule I, Definitions, “sustainable communities- human communities that have achieved a balance between environmental, economic and social systems and that respect the carrying capacity of the supporting environment.

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