An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada

This report applies the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) methodology to two infrastructure assets in Manitoba, Canada: Stephenfield Reservoir (a built asset) and Pelly’s Lake (a natural wetland). The study quantifies the economic value of the ecosystem and infrastructure services they provide and compares these to the costs of replacing those services with grey infrastructure. The findings demonstrate that both natural and naturalized built assets are significantly more cost-effective than traditional grey infrastructure for water storage, irrigation, and nutrient removal.

• Stephenfield Reservoir provides highly cost-effective irrigation and water storage services. Its cumulative discounted value of enabled economic activity is estimated at CAD 6.07 billion by 2050, while its operation and management (O&M) costs are only CAD 256,000.
• Replacing the services of Stephenfield Reservoir with new grey infrastructure would be significantly more expensive. The required capital cost is CAD 5.33 million, and the O&M costs for such built assets (approximately CAD 300,000) would exceed the current reservoir's maintenance costs.
• Pelly’s Lake provides ecosystem and infrastructure services with a cumulative discounted valuation of approximately CAD 60 million between 2019 and 2050. The most significant contributors to this value are nutrient removal and carbon sequestration.
• The cost of building and operating grey infrastructure to replace the ecosystem services of Pelly’s Lake is estimated at CAD 36.99 million in the baseline scenario. The most expensive replacement item is carbon sequestration, requiring investments of approximately CAD 23.1 million.
• Climate change is projected to increase the value of flood protection provided by Pelly’s Lake. In the climate change scenario, the value of flood protection increases by 43.22% compared to the baseline, mitigating approximately CAD 320,200 in flood damages.
• Pelly’s Lake has untapped potential as an irrigation asset. If used for water storage and irrigation, it could generate cumulative benefits of CAD 15.7 million (including agriculture GDP, tax revenues, and discretionary income) between 2019 and 2050.
• The SAVi analysis for Stephenfield Reservoir shows that in the baseline scenario, the asset contributes CAD 80.2 million to GDP, CAD 10 million to provincial tax revenues, and CAD 235.2 million to discretionary spending, supporting roughly 1,250 additional jobs.
• Climate change scenarios for Stephenfield Reservoir indicate a decrease in water levels starting from 2035 and a 1.15% increase in nitrogen (N) concentration due to lower water levels.

APA

-1, Bassi, A. M., Pallaske, G., & Stanley, M. (2019). An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-pellys-lake-stephenfield-canada-en.pdf

Chicago

-1, Andrea M Bassi, Georg Pallaske, and Madeline Stanley. An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-pellys-lake-stephenfield-canada-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=-1 |last2=Bassi |first2=Andrea M |last3=Pallaske |first3=Georg |last4=Stanley |first4=Madeline |title=An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=June 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-pellys-lake-stephenfield-canada-en.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{12019application, author = {-1 and Bassi, Andrea M and Pallaske, Georg and Stanley, Madeline}, title = {{An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/savi-pellys-lake-stephenfield-canada-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }