I’ve been enjoying my time on the Canadian Infrastructure Council, which includes 10 of our leading thinkers across the country from BC to NS to NWT. We’re supported by a Secretariat of very smart analysts at Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities Canada who have been helping us with the challenging task of developing a National Infrastructure Assessment. We’ve been trying to get a grasp of the data and information we already have on the state of our water, wastewater, solid waste, and transportation infrastructure in Canada, and what we need to support the growth the country needs (e.g. new housing).
The first part of this was to hear from leaders in many different disciplines across the country about what infrastructure needs are, what natural infrastructure and services exist to help protect us from climate change, and how things vary with geography. As a planner I am pleased to say that over 300 groups and individual experts participated in our engagement sessions this spring, and as members we reached out to many of our colleagues and professional associations to make sure their concerns were heard.
The result is a really interesting What We Heard report about the state of our infrastructure and the challenges in renewing and expanding it to meet a changing climate and growing population. Hearing the concerns of civil servants, engineers, planners, finance experts, community organizations, and more set the tone for the development of the NIA. Check it out here, and stay posted for further updates as the NIA approaches.
