Project Overview

British Columbia Institute of Technology’s Guichon Creek Restoration project has earned an Envision Platinum award for sustainable infrastructure from ISI. The project was prompted due to the formation of a sinkhole caused by a failing culvert on campus adjacent to one of the buildings on BCIT’s south campus, in Burnaby, B.C. Urgent remediation works were recommended following a site visit that identified the sinkhole would likely grow, posing risks to infrastructure as well as life safety.

The BCIT Campus Plan was developed through extensive consultation and identified restoring Guichon Creek through daylighting projects, as a goal. When the Burnaby campus was developed, a section of Guichon Creek was culverted to flow underground from the south to north of campus.   The project leveraged this plan to develop a prompt strategy that would both address the current sinkhole and mitigate risks of future sinkholes.

This solution not only offered enhancements to campus with new green space, but also supported resilience strategies by removing the risk of future culvert failures and sizing the creek’s capacity to accommodate 100-year storm events. Other benefits of the project included installing a fish ladder to support fish migration efforts, contributing to the campus’s Living Labs program, and demonstrate BCIT’s focus on sustainable solutions.

Sustainability is embedded into BCIT’s Campus Plan, its Strategic Plan, its Stormwater Design Criteria — and articulated in its Sustainability Vision. Embedded sustainability principles in BCIT’s project delivery enabled the Guichon Creek Restoration project to be a good opportunity to Envision verification. BCIT’s North Campus project previously applied Envision and was verified at a Gold Level under Envision Version 2.

Quotes

“Although born from an emergency response, this project became an important step in the larger revitalization of Guichon Creek. The Creek is more than a piece of infrastructure to BCIT; it’s a valuable habitat for a host of native plants and animals, and a wonderful amenity for students and employees, as well as the neighboring community. Work in and around the Creek is always done with care and thoughtful stewardship and the Envision framework was a perfect partner in the process.”
— Joe Cosh, BCIT Director of Facilities Improvements 

“This project is an example of an organization creating change by making sustainability a core principle. The groundwork was laid with the Campus Plan which allowed for a swift delivery project execution that not only addressed the issue of a sinkhole but also expanded access to nature on campus while enhancing resilience. BCIT’s dedication is proof that embedding sustainability principles into project delivery does not have to create a burden.”
— Jill Roth, Vice President and Senior Consultant at luuceo consulting inc.

“Congratulations to BCIT on earning Envision Platinum for the Guichon Creek Project. The project adds to improved quality of life improvements for the campus with an enhanced capacity design for Guichon Creek that alsoaccommodates future climate-change conditions — an outstanding example of using natural systems to address the infrastructure challenges of today.”
— Kailey Eldredge, ISI’s Verification Director

Verified Sustainability Achievements

Leadership in Sustainability – Commitments to addressing the social, environmental and economic aspects of the project were made at the outset and regularly revisited. These included minimizing impacts to campus operations, protecting environmental resources, and delivering the project in a timely and economic fashion. Adherence to sustainability goals was facilitated by weekly project delivery meetings for discussion of project goals and issue resolution.

Enhanced Collaboration – From the beginning, there was strong collaboration among the project owner, the designer, construction partners, and other stakeholders, steering the project to identified sustainability goals. With ongoing collaboration taking place over the life of the project, the project team was able to deliver a timely, cost-effective project that strengthened and restored the area’s natural systems.

Development of Local Skills and Abilities – This project contributes to BCIT’s Living Labs programs by restoring a portion of Guichon Creek. A Civil Engineering Capstone Design Project, that focused on the daylighting  of Guichon Creek, was realized through the project’s efforts to daylight a portion of Guichon Creek. BCIT has partnered with the province to establish training programs that support future skills gaps and offer programs that will serve educational needs beyond the scope of the project.

Quality of Life Improvements – The project aligns with community goals, addresses social impacts, and proactively addresses long-term environmental changes. Existing public space and amenities will be enhanced, and a portion of previously lost natural features will be restored through the project. Guichon Creek restoration efforts tie in with other redevelopment programs happening concurrently, all of which strive to enhance public space and amenities on campus.

Enhancing Wetland and Surface Water Functions – The scope of work includes the removal of a weir and culvert to be replaced with a daylighted creek channel. The project protects the water quality and helps protect sediment transport while supporting aquatic habitat connectivity efforts along Guichon Creek. The existing sediment transport regime was maintained within the restored reach and surrounding areas with support from a geomorphologist. One of the specific measures undertaken to support water quality is the use of natural filtration of any potential runoff that enters the creek. Runoff is filtered by the now exposed creek bank vegetation and underlain native soil, and also screened by the newly installed riprap.

Sites of High Ecological Value / Wetland and Surface Water Buffers – Guichon Creek was historically a salmon and cutthroat trout bearing creek which had previously been developed over, degrading this habitat of high ecological value. The creek restoration work includes the installation of a fish ladder which will support fish passage efforts. As well, this project restores aquatic and riparian habitat, introducing new buffer zones to the creek.

Management of Stormwater – Adapted to anticipated capacity demands and future climate-change scenarios, the stormwater design emphasizes infiltration and improving the rate of runoff from existing conditions. Part of the campus’s larger stormwater management plan, this project returns a previously culverted section to predevelopment hydrologic conditions.

Protecting Surface and Groundwater Quality – Restoration of this portion of the creek will contribute to surface water quality. Where the creek was formerly culverted below asphalt, a creek bed was re-established. Water quality monitoring has been completed historically for the creek as part of the educational programs of the campus, and post-development water quality monitoring will be completed as required by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. BCIT Burnaby campus also has operational procedures in place to prevent accidental contamination of the creek.

Infrastructure Integration – The project returns a portion of Guichon Creek to natural conditions and removes the future risk of sinkholes developing by removing the culvert. The project integrates into the existing stormwater infrastructure system as well as the Guichon Creek system, with the restored creek channel integrating with BCIT’s stormwater management strategy.