Launch of the International Institute of Aquarespnsible Municipalities

Daniel Coderre, INRS Director General, and Éric Bauce, Executive Vice-rector, Development, at Université Laval took part in the launch of the International Institute of Aquaresponsible Municipalities (iiAm) on March 20, 2013, at Palais des congrès de Montréal during Americana 2013, the international environmental technology trade show. The result of an INRS–Université Laval partnership, iiAm makes its expertise available to cities and municipalities seeking aquaresponsible certification through an, independent audit of their water department and water resources practices.

A not-for-profit organization, iiAm fills a genuine need by providing municipalities with a recognized tool to analyze their water management performance and efficacy. Aquaresponsability covers all the steps municipalities must take to implement an integrated water management approach ensuring that water resources are protected, sustainable, shared, and fairly used.

“Water management is a complex issue that requires specialized scientific and technical knowledge,” said Daniel Coderre. “INRS and Université Laval research have contributed for many years to the development of water science knowledge and know-how. iiAm is based on the pooling of our complementary competencies, to support municipalities here and around the world as they adopt innovative best practices for the integrated management of their ‘blue gold’.”

“Université Laval is proud to be putting its water management expertise to work in this way,” said Éric Bauce. “We applaud the creation of iiAm which, by conducting comprehensive audits of city water management practices, will help make municipal aquaresponsability an important aspect of sustainable development.”

Based in Québec City, iiAm’s areas of interest span potable water, wastewater, and receiving environments, as well as water management and efficacy. Water audits help municipalities in multiple ways, conferring financial, environmental, human, and organizational benefits. ♦

See photos from the launch of the launch of the International Institute of Aquaresponsible Municipalities (iiAm)

Launch of the International Institute of Aquarespnsible Municipalities

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