Federal government partners with FCM to strengthen asset management in British Columbia

From: Infrastructure Canada

News release

City of Williams Lake, British Columbia, December 8, 2023 — Today, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, and Scott Pearce, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), announced a federal investment of over $400,000 to help 9 communities in British Columbia implement innovative strategies to manage their municipal infrastructure.

Known as asset management, this investment will help the communities ensure that their infrastructure such as arenas, bridges, drinking water and wastewater systems, and roads are working as efficiently as possible. It will also allow them to make better investment decisions. Asset management also helps reduce risks so municipalities can provide reliable and affordable services and a high quality of life to their residents.

Among the communities are:

  • The City of Williams Lake. It will receive $50,000 to review the current asset management status; develop an asset management program for the City, including policy, strategy, roadmap/plan; to review and update the City's asset classes and asset inventory; review existing asset management record systems (MAIS) for suitability with a proposed asset management program; and do system integration and training.
  • The District of Vanderhoof. It will receive $50,000 to develop an asset management plan. This project will allow the District to understand its assets' condition in a more comprehensive way. Through these assessments, the District will be able to keep track of its municipal assets and plan updates, repairs, and replacements with increased efficiency. This will also allow to budget more efficiently and plan better the completion of those projects.
  • The City of Kimberley. It will receive $48,000 to improve asset management in the community. The primary software currently used by the city for asset management does not match its needs and recently experienced failure, data loss, and security issues. Thanks to the funding, the City will install a robust and resilient platform to bolster its asset management program. Data from the legacy system will be migrated and redeployed in a modern, user-friendly, secure environment for staff and public to access.

Quotes

“Investments in infrastructure asset management projects will help improve the quality of life in municipalities across British Columbia. Today’s funding announcement will help them plan and manage their infrastructure based on reliable data to create strong, sustainable and affordable communities.”

The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities

“Local governments are responsible for approximately 60% of the public infrastructure that support our economy and our quality of life, such as roads, bridges and wastewater systems. That’s why supporting them in building and maintaining strong asset management through initiatives like the FCM’s Municipal Asset Management Program is crucial. This program, funded by the Government of Canada, helps communities in British Columbia and across the country develop sound asset management practices and conduct data collection and analysis to improve their investment decisions.”

Scott Pearce, President, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Quick facts

  • The funding announced today comes from the Municipal Asset Management Program (MAMP) – a $110-million program funded by the Government of Canada and delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

  • The MAMP is designed to help Canadian municipalities strengthen infrastructure investment decisions based on reliable data and sound asset management practices.

  • The MAMP provides asset management training, funding and information sharing to enable municipalities to access the data needed to plan effectively.

  • Under the Investing in Canada Plan, the Government of Canada is investing over $180 billion over 12 years in municipal asset management, public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and rural and northern communities across Canada.

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Contacts

For more information (media only), please contact:

Micaal Ahmed
Office of the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities
343-598-3920
micaal.ahmed@infc.gc.ca

Infrastructure Canada
613-960-9251
Toll free: 1-877-250-7154
Email: infc.media.infc@canada.ca
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn
Web: Infrastructure Canada

FCM Media Relations
613-907-6395
media@fcm.ca

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