RDCK Board Highlights - February 2023

Proposed RDCK Five-Year Financial Plan

At the Special Board Meeting on Friday, February 17 a draft of the 2023-2027 Financial Plan was provided to the Board. The latest projection is an 11 to 12% average increase in taxes for RDCK residents, although this is highly variable depending on the area or municipality the resident lives in. The range across the areas is from about a 5% to 24% increase. The Castlegar and District Community Complex arena floor repair, estimated at $1.5 million, is driving the large increase in Castlegar and the surrounding areas. Increases in fire protection service costs are also contributing to some of the more substantial increases. Some of the change in taxation is also driven by shifts in assessment.

Asset management will have an increased focus across most services. This will increase costs in the short term, but will pay dividends with improved financial planning, asset availability and service delivery over the mid to long term.

The RDCK will host seven hybrid public meetings (in-person and online) and one online public meeting through February and March which will allow the public in our various sub regions to comment and provide feedback on the proposed five-year Financial Plan. Follow the link for the complete meeting schedule.

Kootenay Lake Local Conservation to fund 2023 projects

The Board approved $74,376.50 in grant funds for the Kootenay Lake Local Conservation Fund to be spread among six different projects. The fund provides grants to support local conservation efforts in Electoral Areas A, D and E focused on the conservation of water and aquatic systems, as well as wildlife and habitat. Here are the six projects:

PROJECT

PROPONENT

AMOUNT

Grizzly Bear Coexistence Solution

Lardeau Valley Opportunity Links

$11,500

Expansion of Harrop Wetland Restoration

Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society

$14, 662.50

Protecting Indigenous Cultural Values and Fish and Wildlife Habitat on Kootenay Lake

Ktunaxa Nation Council

$10,000

Bat roost habitat monitoring in the Kootenay Lake Region

Wildlife Conservation Society of Canada

$20,441

Habitat restoration for beavers along the Duncan and Lardeau River Floodplains

BC Conservation Foundation

$10,000

Kootenay Watershed Science

Living Lakes Canada

$7,773

Curbside Collection Consultation

The RDCK is seeking the public`s feedback on a curbside collection service in certain parts of RDCK Electoral Areas. Households in Electoral Area’s D and K are not part of the service proposal due to their distance to RDCK waste disposal facilities for processing organic waste. From now until April 21, 2023, the RDCK`s Resource Recovery Department is holding a public consultation aimed a receiving resident input on a proposal to introduce curbside collection services for household waste (garbage, recycling and organic waste) to Electoral Area residents within potential service area boundaries. Residents can view the proposed service areas, collection services and provide feedback to the RDCK at https://engage.rdck.ca/.

Community Advisory Committee Bylaw

The Board adopted the Drainage, Water and Wastewater System Community Advisory Committee Bylaw. This bylaw is part of ongoing RDCK efforts to improve governance of RDCK – owned water systems and establishes a mechanism for communities to provide input to the RDCK on the operation of their local water system. The role of a Community Advisory Committee is to provide constructive and objective input regarding matters related directly to a water system and to help facilitate effective communication with water users in the community.

Resource Recovery Facilities Regulatory Bylaw

The Board adopted the amended Resource Recovery Facilities Regulatory Bylaw. The changes to the bylaw include a 10% price increase in tipping fees at all RDCK landfills and transfer stations, due to the significant increase in operating costs (fuel, labour, insurance and supplies) experienced over the past year. As well, the amended bylaw provides new definitions and regulatory modifications to improve operational efficiencies. This will help to clarify the acceptance of certain materials, including tires, uncontaminated soils and drywall as mixed waste.

Climate Action Ambassadors

To help deliver the RDCK’s climate action plans, the Board supports the development and delivery of the 2-year Climate Action Ambassadors program in partnership with Youth Climate Corps – Wildsight. The goal of this program is to help create a presence in the community to engage with residents, inform them of our many different programs and share resource information. The focus will be on resource recovery, wildfire mitigation, FireSmart, WaterSmart, rebates for energy efficient home retrofits and construction, as well as community services.

Kootenay Lake Flood Impact Analysis

BGC Engineering has provided the RDCK with an analysis of economic losses that may result from elevated lake levels in Kootenay Lake. The purpose of the work is to broaden the understanding of potential Kootenay Lake geohazard impacts and provide best practices for managing reservoir geohazard risk. To read the report, click here and go to page 496.

RDCK Quarterly Report

The Board received the 2022 Q4 Quarterly Report which details the current projects and initiatives of the RDCK. Please follow the link to the most recent RDCK Quarterly Report.

Directors Reports

RDCK Directors provide monthly reports outlining what they have been working on. Click here to read the February reports in the Board minutes (agenda item 4.5, pg. 271).

Click here to view a print-friendly PDF version.

The content on this page was last updated February 24 2023 at 1:02 AM