BACKGROUND

Through the years, many diverse groups and agencies have been working for the betterment of the Nanaimo River Watershed.

In response to community concerns, the Board of the Nanaimo & Area Land Trust (NALT), passed motions that led to the creation of The Nanaimo River Watershed Baseline Report and the Nanaimo River Strategies Symposium, a meeting of many stakeholders with interests in the watershed. Stakeholders who participated in the Symposium included representatives of community groups, non-governmental agencies, industry, individuals and local, regional, provincial and federal government representatives.

From that September 2011 Symposium, a Working Group was formed and, in November 2011, four overarching themes were identified:

• Funding
• Community Outreach
• Organizational Structure
• Land Acquisition.

In January 2012, an Organizational Structure Committee was formed and charged with developing Terms of Reference for a consensus-based watershed group.

These Terms of Reference have been developed for the purpose of guiding a cooperative working group of interested individuals and organizations representing community groups, property owners, industry, user groups, government agencies, and non-government organizations.

A key benefit of the Roundtable is the ability to foster and facilitate multistakeholder communication.  This leads to the sharing of information, supporting each others initiatives, and at times joint projects.