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This executive summary describes natural infrastructure approaches in Canada, highlighting how wetlands, trees, and rain gardens can complement traditional grey infrastructure to deliver municipal services like stormwater management and flood protection. It presents three 'bright spots'—the City of Nelson, Halifax Regional Municipality, and EPCOR—as illustrative models of implementation across different administrative and geographic contexts.

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines "bright spots"—effective examples of policy and planning change—to scale natural infrastructure for water services in Canada. It analyzes three distinct models: the City of Nelson's use of local bylaws, the Halifax Regional Municipality's integrated multi-level planning, and EPCOR's hybrid approach combining natural and grey infrastructure for flood mitigation in Edmonton.