Freshwater for Fish and People: Moving Towards “Living Water Smart”

Description

In British Columbia, and elsewhere, water managers are faced with the challenge of balancing competing demands for water. Limits in supply or high demand create situations of water scarcity where not enough water is available for both human (out-of-stream) and ecological (instream) needs. As well, governing laws, institutions, or managers often do not to recognize that instream needs have a prior, or at least equal, right to water comparable to other users. In some situations water is allocated to out-of-stream users first, with instream needs being an afterthought or only if “excess” water exists. Current trends in B.C. suggest that balancing needs for water will become increasingly difficult in the future: the population is growing; rates of water consumption are among the highest in the country and the world; water use is currently in conflict with instream needs in many locations; climate change is increasing water scarcity; and populations of freshwater reliant fish species, such as Pacific salmon, are in decline.

–Excerpt from the report’s Precis