Meet Your Stormwater Superstars

Terri in local river

 If you are looking for an expert on all things stormwater, look no further! Terri has been working for the City of Campbell River for the past 17 years as an Environmental Specialist, and he can tell you everything there is to know about the City’s waterways.

Terri’s desire to make a meaningful impact in his field of work is what brought him to the area. He knows that proper stormwater management starts at the planning stages. Working in Long Range Planning for the Environment, Terri can determine how new development projects will impact natural waterways. For example, if a developer is working near a stream, Terri and his team will plan how the new subdivision will manage stormwater in order to protect the stream. 

Another important part of Terri’s job is to ensure the City is adhering to provincial and government environmental regulations. This includes revising municipal policies when provincial or federal government regulations and priorities change. “We have an obligation to meet regulations around environmental protection and do as little harm as we can.” Terri says. He also works with city volunteers, like Campbell River’s streamkeepers, to ensure they are adhering to the City’s guidelines.

Stormwater management is not a stand-alone aspect of the City’s services; it is interconnected with everything around it. Terri offered this perspective: “We (as a society) depend on consistent ecological conditions. All communities are fully dependent on nature and the organisms going about their day-to-day business, which contribute to making Campbell River a great place to live. Managing stormwater is an integral part of ensuring that all these organisms are working well together.”

Tyson and Joe with Hydro Evacuation Truck

 Meet Tyson, a life-long Campbell River resident and stormwater expert! Tyson loves living here, with so many great things to appreciate including the nearby ocean and having a great community. 

When he’s not golfing and admiring the beautiful views of Campbell River, Tyson works for the City as a Hydro Excavation Truck Operator. What is this, you might ask? A hydro excavation truck has a flushing pipe on the front to flush out sewers and pipes, and a vacuum on the side for removing dirt and debris. Tyson gets right into the thick of things to ensure that City infrastructure, including stormwater, is well maintained.

When asked about the link between stormwater and the everyday life of residents of Campbell River, Tyson highlighted that, “When I first started working with the City, I didn’t realize the work that goes into managing stormwater on a day-to-day basis. The system is running continuously with water flowing all the time; when it’s raining or snowing, people don’t realize the water has to go somewhere. Instead of flooding or pooling and freezing – all of which can damage people’s property - it’s going into catch basins and pipes. The City does a good job of keeping the water flowing into the catch basins and protecting residents and property.”

Tyson also explains how modern technology can help manage and maintain catch basins. “There is a lot of salt and sand in the catch basins after the winter, and in the new subdivisions we see a lot of concrete, all of which can stop the catch basin from working properly. The City has developed an effective mapping system to identify which catch basins need cleaning.”

Spring’s love for Campbell River began years ago when Spring would visit the area on vacation. Frequent trips to Miracle Beach and Oyster River were a source of inspiration four years ago when Spring and her three kids moved to the area.

Spring recognizes that her background in geotechnical engineering and geology has a lot to do with stormwater services. Spring applies her experience to her everyday work, looking at stormwater from a geological perspective. Spring will gauge how someone’s backyard pool was built and how this can cause slope instabilities, resulting in negative stormwater impacts. Spring also looks at stormwater and sanitary systems from an engineering perspective; this involves inspecting the systems and pipes for damage and estimating the longevity of the pipes. 

A large part of Spring’s work deals with future development and planning, including helping make modifications to City bylaws for better stormwater practices. Another part of Spring’s work includes inspecting critical ponds, working with Greenways Land Trust to create signage, and getting local schools involved. Spring and her team are also working on painting fish on the catch basins, to try and increase awareness of the important role they play in environmental protection, and deter people from dumping oil and other contaminants into them. “This is because the catch basins, which collect stormwater and debris, flow into our waterways,” Spring notes.

The uncertainty of nature is like a cloud that changes with every gust of wind- you never know what shape it will hold. Spring notes the same comparison with stormwater: “Stormwater should be taken seriously. It’s essential to understand strategies to slow down the flow of stormwater runoff because, in the future, we will see stricter environmental regulations for new developments. Through a thorough review of stormwater maintenance activities, we are trying to create benchmarks for current stormwater practices and identify areas where we can improve.”

Joe and Tyson with Hydro Evacuation Truck

 Say hello to dedicated stormwater service expert, Joe! Joe has been working with the City of Campbell River in the Department of Sewage and Drainage since 2015, and has had his fair share of stormwater experience.

Joe starts his day off as Field Service Supervisor by meeting with his crew and delegating tasks. Each member of Joe’s team holds a different position involving different tasks. Joe works with a CCTV Operator, who runs cameras through sewage and drainage pipes and sends reports on their condition to Joe. Joe also supervises a vacuum truck operator who drives a truck with equipment that cleans drainage and sewage collection pipes. 

On a day-to-day basis, Joe’s team also receives service requests to repair stormwater infrastructure. This could include fixing a damaged catch basin or a blocked culvert. “Anyone can send in a service request,” says Joe, “In fact, we normally receive them from the general public, and only occasionally from City staff.”  

If you ever have a service request, know that Joe will be there to attend to it!