Agenda Item No.: G.1.a.
National Guide to Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure (InfraGuide)
Recommendation:
That the City of Edmonton endorse the best
practice concept from the National Guide to
Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure and
apply the practices when deemed
appropriate.
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Report Summary
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This report provides background
information on InfraGuide to support the
recommendation that the City of
Edmonton endorse the use of Best
Practices.
The National Guide to Sustainable
Municipal Infrastructure (InfraGuide)
develops Best Practices that reflect
proven approaches to the delivery of
sustainable municipal infrastructure.
The application of such Best Practices
will save infrastructure providers money
while delivering infrastructure in a
manner that respects the social,
economic and environmental well being
of our communities. This will also
ensure the cost-effective delivery of
infrastructure.
Report
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The InfraGuide is a unique opportunity
for all infrastructure providers to share
information on a national basis that
enables infrastructure to be delivered
more cost effectively while respecting
the social and environmental needs of
the community. The City of Edmonton
currently owns and operates
infrastructure assets currently included
in the scope of the InfraGuide.
As a leader in seeking out new ideas and
practicing continuous improvement for
infrastructure delivery, the City of
Edmonton has contributed both its
Routing:
Delegation:
Written By:
March 15, 2004
File: 2004PWD050
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knowledge and resources to the
development of Best Practice
documents. The City of Edmonton
currently has three representatives
actively involved in leading and
developing Best Practices for the
InfraGuide.
Formal adoption and application of the
InfraGuide Best Practices by the City of
Edmonton will demonstrate to others
that Edmonton uses proven state-of-theart technology to support long-term
sustainability of its infrastructure.
The following cities have already
endorsed the use of Best Practices:
 City of Ottawa, ON
 City of Vancouver, BC
 The Regional Municipality of
Halton, ON
 Halifax Regional Municipality, NS
 Halifax Regional Water Commission
 City of Surrey, BC
 City of London, ON
 City of Saskatoon, SK
 City of Regina, SK
 City of Burlington, ON
 Town of Oakville, ON
 Town of Richmond Hill
 City of Kingston, ON
 City of Cambridge, ON
 Cape Breton Regional Municipality,
NS
 City of Gatineau, QC
 City of Kamloops, BC
 City of Moncton, NB
 City of Prince Albert, SK
 Municipality of the District of
Lunenburg, NS
 City of Whitehorse, YT
Transportation and Public Works Committee, City Council
W. D. Burn
K. Sawatzky/J. Hodgson/K. L. Siu/A. Cepas
Asset Management and Public Works Department
(Page 1 of 3)
National Guide to Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure (InfraGuide)
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 Corp. of the City of Thorold, ON
 Town of Gander, NF
 Town of Morinville, AB
 Town of Smithers, BC
 Town of Wolfville, NS
 District of Sicamous, BC
 Town of Milk River, AB
 Municipality of Martinville, QC
 Village of Sayward, BC
For the protection and enhancement of
quality of life, the InfraGuide identifies
and disseminates best practices and
encourages innovation to support
sustainable municipal infrastructure
decision and action. The project is
funded under the Infrastructure Canada
Program and implemented by the
Federation of Canadian Municipalities in
partnership with the National Research
Council.
The InfraGuide covers both the decisionmaking and investment planning area as
well as technical solutions to
infrastructure construction, operation
and maintenance. Initial scope includes
the areas of environmental protocols,
potable water, storm and wastewater and
municipal roads.
A Governing Council composed of 22
members representing a broad regional
mix and a combination of affiliation and
expertise provides leadership and
direction. Governing Council members
include academics, consulting engineers,
members of associations, municipal
politicians, contractors, municipal staff
and the general public.
Five technical committees have been
established to develop Best Practices:
Decision Making and Investment
Planning, Environmental Protocols,
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(Page 2 of 3)
Potable Water, Storm and Wastewater,
and Municipal Roads and Sidewalks.
Best Practice topics and priorities have
been identified through extensive
stakeholder discussions followed by
national scans to identify current
practices. National working groups with
expertise in the subject areas develop
each specific Best Practice under the
technical committees’ direction.
Currently, over 250 volunteers are
actively involved in the development of
Best Practices through the working
groups and technical committees. These
volunteers include an impressive
collection of technical expertise
representing all regions and a range of
community sizes across Canada. The
City of Edmonton is well represented in
having three members of City staff
sitting on the various technical
committees.
 John Hodgson – member of the
Governing Council and Chair of
Storm and Wastewater Technical
Committee.
 Al Cepas – member of the Municipal
Infrastructure Committee and ViceChair of the Roads and Sidewalks
Technical Committee.
 Konrad Siu – member of the
Relationship Infrastructure
Committee and Vice-Chair of the
Decision-Making and Investment
Planning Technical Committee.
In addition, several other staff have been
invited to provide their technical
expertise in the development of a
number of Best Practice documents.
Additional information is available at
www.infraguide.ca.
National Guide to Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure (InfraGuide)
Budget/Financial Implications
The adoption of nationally recognized Best
Practices supports cost-effective decision
making that respects the social, economic
and environmental needs of the
municipality.
Justification of Recommendation
As an adopter of InfraGuide Best Practices,
the City of Edmonton is demonstrating
proactive leadership in quality of service
delivery and the significant potential to
improve the financial bottom line.
Background Information Attached
1. Best Practices - List of published
documents and documents under review.
Others Approving this Report
R. Millican, General Manager,
Transportation and Streets Department
(Page 3 of 3)