New Zealand Surveyor Journal Issue 307

March 2022, no.306 August 2024, no. 307

The New Zealand Surveyor

The New Zealand Surveyor

Journal of the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors

The New Zealand Surveyor

A Journal of the Survey and Spatial New Zealand, Tātai Whenua (New Zealand Institute of Surveyors Inc).

Issue No. 307 2022 ISSN: 0048-0150

Available electronically at: Library : Survey Spatial New Zealand (surveyspatialnz.org)

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Editor: Peter Knight

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Editorial Board: Brian Coutts; Mark Geddes.

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David Goodwin and the idea of Belonging

Editorial

Peter Knight

When my father died I said that I would write an obituary, I never did. There are not many men in my life that are of the same level of importance as a father, but among this handful, I include a contemporary, David Pell Goodwin. David’s sudden death at the age of sixty-four from complications arising from heart disease in September 2022, has given me a second chance to write some words about the life and work of a man who was a powerful example to me, and close to my heart.

David and Dianne Goodwin brought their family to New Zealand from Zimbabwe in 2003. David wrote that he had not wanted to leave Africa, but does not elaborate. One must assume that that the human rights violations and declining economy of the Robert Mugabe era in Zimbabwe forced David to seek a refuge for his young family. The family settled in Ocean Grove in Dunedin and David took on work as a builder. In 2004 David enrolled as a PhD student at the School of Surveying at Otago University in Dunedin.1

David’s Father was a surveyor who served the Rhodesia Railways, and was a speaker of the native African, Sindebele language. David became interested in land and indigenous culture from an early age. In his youth he roamed widely on the Southern African veld, a wide open country of grass and low scrub, with which David developed deep affinity. In the prologue to his PhD thesis David relates a formative experience in Malawi in the 1960s observing communities dwelling on hillsides above the Shire River. During his undergraduate days at the University in Cape Town, in South Africa (free railway passes for family allowed David to study, some two-days travel to the south), David visited an informal settlement on Table Mountain near Capetown asking, “What was the essence of belonging and community?”2

Following graduation from the University of Capetown, David registered as a cadastral surveyor in Zimbabwe in 1984, and became a lecturer in surveying at the University of Zimbabwe in 1986. Graduate work on land tenure in London followed with an MSc (Distinction) in 1989. A remarkable facet of David Goodwin, and one of which the surveying profession may be proud, was his ability to work across many subjects. In his doctoral thesis he fearlessly describes effects of macro-economic influences, agricultural practises, and globalization, using anthropological, political, and even moral sources to direct attention to the question of what needs to be done. And what needs to be done is never an abstract goal of development, economic growth or a thousand other ways of diverting attention away from the practical task of helping the poor. David’s work is full of very clever suggestions that might be easily implemented if the political will may be found, and he does not shy from political comment.

The hope of many lies in a point arriving whereby we can all see ourselves as part of a global community where fortunes of rich and poor are inextricably bound up together in a society that stresses the responsibilities of global citizenship as well as rights.3

We are discussing the academic sciences, but like an intellectual of the old school, David’s sources are deeper and his application wider; academic writing is only a part of his oeuvre that includes poetry and prose.4 Poetry reveals and helps create a spiritual realm accompanying and giving meaning to the physical realm.5 It is something grasped by heart and mind together, and also includes our physical bodies and the land of which we are a part. Most of us, spend our lives ‘hunting’ as David described the ways in which we put food on the table: academic work; professional surveying, and other practical matters like working on the house and garden in the dunes at Ocean Grove. But let us not miss out on the larger story that I believe supports David’s endeavours, and acknowledge the underlying reality of the spiritual source and inspiration of all his work. David was a professed Christian and active member of Musselburgh Baptist Church in Dunedin, and one might resort to Christian platitudes to explain the spiritual basis for David’s work. That would, however, be ignoring the particular context of David’s spirituality and the way in which his work and his relationships (including the relationship to land) embodied a unique experience in which David’s spirituality was worked out. This is something I have in common with David, in fact it is something that is common to our generation of students who could not help but be affected by neocolonialism; indigenous trauma; and environmental destruction at a frightening pace and scale. Like David I became interested in something I called, relationship to place, like David, I was led to, belonging as a spiritual axiom that needed to inform our work.

It was during his PhD studies, 2004-2007 that David produced his work on Maori land tenure, and continued his investigations of Shona and Ndebele land tenure, which were a focus for him long before arriving in New Zealand.6 For his PhD thesis, David’s idea was to make a comparative study of the indigenous land tenure in Zimbabwe and New Zealand with a particular interest in customary forms of tenure.7 He succeeds at this overarching level by developing the idea of belonging. Belonging, is in my mind, an essentially spiritual idea, but one that includes practical details of the relationship between people and land. David provides us with a detailed description of Maori land tenure through the colonial period to the present. Through meticulous fieldwork––interviews primarily, supported by a wide assimilation of New Zealand and international sources––David assuredly tackles his large, complex subject, outlining key issues, describing these in a manner demonstrating respect for the indigenous ethos, and presenting an insightful understanding of New Zealand law as it applies to Maori land tenure.8 The practical issues are clearly set forth, not in any complex theoretical manner, but often in the language of the interviewees, and usually based around family and community matters. His insights and suggestions should surely inform any future reform of legislation relevant to Maori land tenure.

The idea of belonging emerges most strongly in David’s studies of land tenure in Zimbabwe. David’s interests in customary tenure mean that he is working with poor and indigenous people, trying to value and discover what they feel is important. At considerable risk to his safety and liberty in a precarious, violent political climate, David retraces his steps in Zimbabwe, returning for his PhD studies to a farm he had studied as a geography student in high school. Gone was a sense of accumulating husbandry and development that he’d found as a youngster; the farm occupants were now barely surviving having experienced massive displacement of people and breakdown of economic infrastructure. David writes,

“ … a belonging link is more important and more enduring than a land link. People somehow manage to move and ‘square’ things with the living and the dead, but the sense of belonging …, well, it knows no boundaries.”9

It goes without saying that land tenure is about relationship to place, and as David moves deeper into the subject of what is behind the rules, and the administrative forms that we invent to secure our relationship with land, he finds that many of the primitive, primary expressions of relationship to place are about relationships between people. Burying of placenta; the marking of the ground; sometimes eating the earth, are rituals that take place within a web of relationship between people, and it is the relationships between people upon which economic

livelihood depends as much as upon the land. David often returns to human survival as a key factor in the differences in the way in which Maori and native African land tenure have developed through the colonial period. Maori, he argues, have their survival needs met by the modern state, whereas in Zimbabwe the poor are forced to rely upon increasingly pressured communal land areas to scratch out a living from the soil.

In using the word belonging, David recognizes relationships between people as well as relationship to the physical environment. Land tenure is not something, therefore, that takes place in abstract theory, but rather in relationships in which the goods of the Earth are shared. David refines his discussion to two essential ideas, belonging and survival. It sometimes looks as though people need to belong in order to survive. I think it a mistake, however, to understand from these ideas that physical survival is the irreducible factor upon which all land tenure depends. The answer to the question of what comes first, belonging or survival, is, both! What is the point of survival without belonging?

Belonging gives meaning not just to survival but to all lives lived out in community and place. I suggest that David’s life and work have a lot to do with cultivating his own sense of belonging. In a poem entitled The Idea of home, David writes,

Poplar indexed sky, hazed kranzes,

The idea of home,

A knowledge of belonging

Underwriting each omission, each trespass;

A fold, and a reason for returning to the fold.10

It was a great rupture for David, to leave behind a place; to be almost literally uprooted, and this is no doubt a factor that makes David so aware of belonging. 11 David says in his PhD thesis that he did not willingly leave Africa, and states that having been recognized by Native Africans as being a white African gave him a great feeling of pride. The discovery by David that relationship to place is primarily about relationships between people, and the fact that our lives may be lived in different places, offers the possibility that we might belong anywhere. Belonging therefore becomes a choice rather than some form of semi-physical link. David certainly belonged in New Zealand: he dwelled at Ocean Grove in the sense of creating and bringing forth beauty in his surroundings, while caring for his family. If belonging is in part about economic relationships, then our work must necessarily be part of belonging, and this is reflected in David’s commitment to his duties as a lecturer at the School of Surveying. David’s work was humble and practical. He marked assignments, and worked with his hands,12 while at

the same time being visionary, and directing his work toward the alleviation of poverty at a national level, always asking: What can we learn from the Old People, and how they lived with each other and the land?13 What are the values we are discovering, embodying and communicating? In his studies in Maori language and culture, it was as though David was as keen to be recognised as embodying Aotearoa as he had been to be recognised as a white African.

David had research interests other than land tenure, particularly those of Polynesian navigation, and the related subject of the orientation of Maori meeting houses.14 David’s interest in the orientation of meeting houses explores the possibility that the early Maori had a belonging link to Raiatea, and that meeting houses may have been oriented to point in the direction of Raiatea.15 A recurring reference in David’s writing on Polynesian navigation is about Tupaia, the Polynesian navigator who accompanied Cook’s first voyage to New Zealand in 1768, and of whom it was said that he could, whenever asked, reliably and accurately point toward his home in Raiatea.16 Not having known at the time the questions to ask, we can only speculate upon how Tupaia achieved his ability to orient himself anywhere he went, but undoubtedly his skill was an attribute of belonging

The question for me is: Can one belong to more than one place? I believe that yes, we can, but I think that David might have said that he has no need to belong to more than one place. In the end it was to Africa that his ashes returned and where his family came together to choose his final resting place. Perhaps it is that we assert the symbolic meaning of belonging most powerfully by choosing one place to which we belong. Can we rise above the duality of the general and particular; work and home; physical and spiritual, and know that what we do not know is more important than what we do know; what we can’t say is more important than what we can say, and that behind the mastery that we see in David’s life and work there is some greater unseen benefit to us all that is being served? Through his work, David was working out his solution, finding his direction home through his acts and choice of belonging, ‘… but now much more in my absence work out your own salvation with fear and trembling’.17 The fear and the trembling comes not from a wrathful and judgemental God, but from the vulnerability of believing in one’s own experience, and following one’s own heart. It allowed David no matter how far he had travelled, to point to a far-away land, to a wild, warm, dry landscape, and a people on the edge of survival, and say, ‘There is my home’.

Notes

¹ Strack (2022) Obituary, David Goodwin, Surveying and Spatial Magazine, December 2022, #110, pp.39-40

2 See PhD Thesis in the Selected Bibliography: Prologue, p.ix

3 See Selected Bibliography Goodwin, D. P. (2002) Informed Change for Zimbabwe’s communal areas: A Geoinformatics perspective. IASCP International conference on “Commons in an age of globalisation”, Victoria Falls. Section 5.

4 Goodwin (1993) A selection of poetry, Preview 3, edited by Harry Chambers, Peterloo Poets, Cornwall.

5 I use the word spiritual in this editorial to reference a dimension of life that could be called moral, one that relates to values; is informed by the ‘heart’ or by conscience, or even emotion.

6 The Shona and Ndebele are native peoples of Zimbabwe in southern Africa.

7 Customary tenure in this context means informal tenure, practises that pre-date more modern institutions of tenure, but have enduring importance, and continuing practical application.

8 David’s PhD contains 25 pages of bibliography.

9 See PhD Thesis in the Selected Bibliography p. 318

10 The Idea of Home, from a collection entitled The Idea of Home, forthcoming

11 As it does myself having been through two immigrations in my lifetime (one at age 10 and another at age 43). David and I shared a PhD convocation at the University of Otago; I didn’t know it at the time, but we both had the word belonging in the titles to our doctoral theses.

12 David was a skilled carpenter, having built his own house in Zimbabwe, and supported his family as a builder in New Zealand before joining the University of Otago.

13 I use the term I learned from Native Canadians when referring to our ancestral carriers of intergenerational wisdom.

14 See Selected Bibliography at the end of this editorial.

15 The results of David’s research into the orientation of Maori meeting houses, like all good research, is about the wealth of ancillary detail, no conclusive generalization on orientation emerges, though certain important meeting houses are indeed found to be oriented toward Raiatea.

16 Society Islands, French Polynesia

17 Philippians 2:12

Selected Bibliography

Goodwin, D. P. (2013), Wharenui, or whare rūnanga, Aligning the Ancestors: The Orientation of Meeting Houses in New Zealand. New Zealand Surveyor No. 302.

Goodwin, D.P. (2010), The Story of the Mandesho people from a long time ago until the present day, Survey Quarterly, Issue 62.

Goodwin, D. P (2007), Belonging Knows no Boundaries: Persisting land tenure custom for Shona, Ndebele and Ngai Tāhu, PhD Thesis, University of Otago.

Goodwin, D. P. (2005), Dealing with priceless treasure: comparing Land with customary links, New Zealand Surveyor No. 295.

Goodwin, D. P. (2002), Informed Change for Zimbabwe’s communal areas: A Geoinformatics perspective. IASCP International conference on “Commons in an age of globalisation”, Victoria Falls.

Surveying the evolution of the book ––

The Measure of the Man

Concept,

Production, Printing and Publication.

Gordon Andreassend MBE, FNZIS, FHKIS, RICS Chartered Land Surveyor.

Introduction

This article has been written to record the story behind the production of this book dealing with the life and career of Archibald Hugh Bogle––Surveyor of the Century. It covers details of the content of the book, and the work of the three Editors who decided to work on this publication.

Three Institute surveyors, joined forces as a self-appointed committee to organize this work, and to edit the material available to take this project through to the printing and publication of the book. Details of this process, the need to obtain funding, and to seek the assistance of the Executive and staff of the National Office of S+SNZ, together with the support of the Kairuri Trust are discussed below.

First Thoughts

The catalyst behind this book was Don McKay’s Institute website biographical article on Archie Bogle that raised an interest in 2 other members - Andrew Blackman and Gordon Andreassend. The three soon agreed to work together on producing and publishing a book expanded from Archie’s book “Links In The Chain.” The Committee had the following objectives, that were maintained throughout the project :

- To perpetuate the memory of Archie Bogle and commemorate the 50th anniversary of his death.

- To promote the survey profession and the Institute.

- To raise funds and promote awareness of the Kairuri Trust and its objectives.

Archie Bogle

What an energetic and interesting man he was! He had charm and charisma and he was obviously devoted to the work of a land surveyor that he had chosen to enter. His enthusiasm for the profession and the complexity of the work that the Registered Surveyor performed was infectious, and his attitude certainly had considerable influence on many young men who entered the profession as Survey Cadets.

The four-year survey cadetship included study to gain a pass in multiple and varied Survey Board examinations. It was most demanding, and many survey cadets toiled on beyond the completion of their cadetships to finish the examinations. Then came the Finals––spread over 3 to 5 days, depending on the number of examinees. This involved the presentation of required maps, plans and documents before the Survey Board in Wellington, which also included practical tests of the candidates’ ability to carry out professional field work. This included the taking of a sun shot and calculating the bearings to Trig Stations.

It was at these Finals that cadets first met members of the Survey Board, and were required to show their competence in all aspects of the survey profession. Archie was appointed to the Survey Board in 1924, and remained a member for 42 years. During that period all cadets gaining their Certificate of Competency would have passed before him - quite a remarkable length of service. He even published an article, ‘A cadet looks at the profession’ - somewhat critical of surveyors and the system.

All cadets who went before the Board will confirm that it was a most demanding experience, but all were impressed by the fairness and understanding of the examiners. Most agreed that Archie was probably the best amongst them, and fond memories were formed in the minds of those young surveyors.

Another lengthy appointment for Archie started in 1939 and continued for 29 years. He was the Editor of “The New Zealand Surveyor” (affectionately known as the ‘Journal’), and produced a total of 62 copies, each with an Editorial written by Archie. Most Registered Surveyors looked forward to receiving their copy of the Journal, and found plenty of good material in its pages to interest them. However, the cadets were also keen to peruse the latest edition, as most copies contained the questions in papers from the recent Survey Board examination, with examples of the solutions to those questions, probably compiled by Archie. This assisted the cadets in their studies, as almost all cadets studied in their spare time

via the correspondence school lessons organized by the Institute. The Journal’s exam questions and answers provided a most useful means of preparing for the examinations. Archie was an unseen, valuable mentor, gaining many grateful friends from among the cadets, for that reason alone.

Preparation for the Book

The starting point for the book was the out of print “LINKS IN THE CHAIN”, written by Archie and published by the NZIS in 1975.

The original book, with no alteration of Archie’s words (other than a few amendments made for editorial errors and outdated language) is reprinted as Part 1 of the new book. Additional photographs are included, along with the original black and white photographs, and many of these have been colourised. These photos make a very colourful presentation, and greatly enhance the book.

Moving on to Part 2 - this is the biography written by Don McKay for the NZIS website in 2015. It has been included in the new book to provide a compact biography of Archie’s life and career. It was this bio. on the NZIS website that brought Don and Gordon into contact, as Gordon was keen to produce a booklet in Hong Kong that would kindle an interest in Archie’s active influence in development within the profession. Don agreed to the booklet being produced with the title ‘Surveyor Extraordinaire’, and it was printed in time to be available at the Institute’s 2021 Conference in Auckland. Andrew––a past Chairman of the Auckland Branch––was given a copy of the booklet at the Conference, and he agreed to join Don, along with Gordon as a member of a three man production committee. At the same time, Don made contact with Archie’s descendants, members of the Goodman family, and they agreed to provide a large collection of Archie’s unpublished work, and other material of interest that could be used in the new book. This would make a Part 3 to the book, and this large collection of almost entirely new material was given the name––‘The Best of Bogle’.

With the formation of the production trio, work commenced as quickly as possible to draft the new book with all available material. However, it became obvious that funds would be required to cover production and printing costs, and the trio looked into this.

Funding The Project

The Institute had no budget to cover printing costs, but fortunately a project such as this fell within the ambit of the Institute’s Kairuri Community Trust, and an approach was made to the Trust to provide financial support. The Trust was most supportive, and a grant was made to initiate the project. Later, when it was obvious that profits would arise, the Committee decided that all proceeds

from the sale of the book would be donated to the Kairuri Trust. Support was also given by the Institute’s Administration to assist with taking orders of the printed book for members, and to deal with accounting and payment collection in the later distribution of the book. To cover distribution, and other costs, the Reprint Committee sought funds from Institute members, with donors acknowledged in the book. This was well-supported by many long-standing members of the profession. The Committee, most grateful for this support and backing of so many members, decided that each donor would be given one copy of the book.

Finding a Printer and Production Team

Early contact was made with firms in Auckland experienced in publishing good quality books of the type that the editors envisaged. At the same time, Bill Robertson, a former Surveyor General, and successor to Archie as Editor of the ‘New Zealand Surveyor,’ agreed to write the Foreward to the second edition. Printing and production costs were obtained, and eventually an experienced designer and publicist was chosen to initiate the design. A Production team of competent designers and printers, with a good track record were appointed to deal with the task of publishing the book.

Printing and Publication

Preparation for printing of Part 1 and Part 2 was reasonably straight forward––both had been published before. Part 1 mainly required the addition of new photographs, and the writing of captions. Part 2 was handled by Don, as amendments were needed to remove sections that were now superfluous, being covered in Part 1, and it was most useful having the author of Part 2 as a member of the editorial team. There was no break in setting up the next phase of the work. However, Part 3 presented the greatest challenge to the editors. It consisted of a wide selection of publications, “New Zealand Surveyor” articles and various written comments of friends and associates of Archie, giving their impressions of the man, and his many and varied accomplishments. In addition, there were private unpublished papers written by Archie, all of which needed a certain degree of editing. This took some time, but eventually the final draft was completed, and the book’s designer took over. Further agreement on his proposals ensued with the editors commenting on all aspects of the design, and all queries and suggestions were rapidly resolved. Now the editors could have a break from writing and editing. However, preparation for selling and distribution occupied their time, while the copy was sent to the printers for production of draft final prints. Right on the contracted date, proof printing documents were circulated, and agreed, and the publisher was able to send all material to the firm in China who had

been contracted to print a run of 1,500 copies of the book. Printing in China was dictated by both quality and price, and the choice of the Auckland publishers in selecting the Guangdong firm was excellent.

The editors were happy with the progress being made, but could not relax, as many aspects facing delivery of such a large number of books and distribution had to be faced. Storage and distribution had to be arranged, and assistance from the National Office of the Institute with website announcements, etc. had to be put in place. Several weeks went by until advice was received from China that the books were to be sent to New Zealand by ship, with arrival in Auckland on an approximate date. So far so good––early delivery in Hong Kong would be by road––with receipt of one box of 12 books going to the editor based in Hong Kong. Expectations ran high for a few days, until the courier arrived with the books. It took little time for the box to be opened and the lucky editor became the first member of the Institute to hold a copy of the new Bogle book, The Measure of the Man, in his hands. It far exceeded his expectations! It met all the contract requirements––and then some! A most handsome, high quality tome––certainly worth all the effort that had gone into its publication. He quickly photographed a copy and emailed the image and his delighted comment to his two fellow editors.

Initial Distribution

The first recipients of the book were donors living in Hong Kong, who were given copies soon after the box of 12 books was received. In addition, two copies were sent to Australia, one to an Australian surveyor who had agreed to write a review of the book, and the other to a NZ surveyor, who was a donor, now living there. The review written by Peter Byrne, Hon. Fellow SSSI, was published in Position magazine, an Australasian publication, and this provided an independent assessment of the book that was well received in Australia and New Zealand. Meanwhile the consignment of 1,500 books was on board a ship bound for Auckland. The editors collected the consignment, and storage was arranged in Auckland prior to distribution. These arrangements were coordinated by the Auckland editors, with ready assistance provided by Bruce Robinson of Global Survey, who stored books at Albany and arranged distribution. Donations from several Branches and the Consulting Surveyors of New Zealand helped funding. The Institute’s first National Manager, Barry Davidson, Hon. MNZIS, also assisted in providing reliable Institute information.

Copies to Donors

Priority distribution was given to sending copies of the book to Institute members who had made a donation. Deliveries were usually by Post and each

book with a weight of 1.3kg was sent in bubble-wrapped packaging. All arrived safely and several recipients wrote to express their delight with the content and appearance of the book. Some examples are :-

• “A handsome publication, well-written and presented”.

• “Made an old man happy.” “The memoirs are truly inspirational”

• “Thank you for bringing such a colossal project to such a wonderful conclusion”, and “for helping at least this aging surveyor remember what a wonderful legacy we share in our profession.”

• “A well-constructed and easy read.”

• “The volume reads almost as a novel and would remind senior members of their field experience in rural surveys.”

• “My (Taumaranui) practice many years ago covered the timber lands and marginal Maori Land Blocks such as Archie camped and traversed over.” “Archie had a brilliant mind and the courage and determination to endure hardship.” “Good read––everyone needs to recognize the contribution made by these pioneers.”

Sales to the Public

Initial investigation indicated that handling charges to obtain over the counter sales would leave little profit on sales, so this avenue was not pursued. However, the agency that handles sales to the Public Libraries provide their service at reasonable fees––so this service has been used. Sales are gradually increasing. With the current situation where a reasonable profit margin has now been achieved, it was decided that a retail price for the book should be fixed, and over the counter sales should soon be in place. It is hoped that a recent sale listing with an international firm, Nielsen’s Book Data Base, should help with overseas sales

Reviews of the book

Some early reviews of the book, prepared by experienced surveyors from within the Institute were published in the S+SNZ website, and Ross Miller in the S+SNZ Magazine. Peter Byrne’s Australian review was circulated in both Australia and New Zealand in Position magazine. These reviews would certainly attract readers from within the Survey and Spatial profession, and it has been noted that the

slightly more than 50% of the 1,500 books printed, have been sold to date, mainly to members of the Survey and Spatial profession. It is hoped that magazines such as The Listener, or North and South, will print reviews once bookshop sales are available, bringing greater public attention to this well produced and very readable book.

However, as the work of the editors comes to an end, it is hoped that a greater market for the sale and purchase of the book will develop. The work of the Production Committee will continue in assisting in marketing the book to the public at large, now that a retail price has been established.

In addition, the planned release of an E-book will enable the inspirational story of one of the country’s most gifted men, and certainly one of the greatest in the Land Surveying profession, to become better known within New Zealand, and worldwide.

Long may the indominable spirit of Archie Bogle be remembered, and prevail within the profession. “Great Totara” indeed !

G. A. Andreassend

Hong Kong June, 2024.

Surveying Ambulatory Water Margins, Reserves and Strips?

Mick Strack, School of Surveying, Te Kura Kairūri.

The provision of public reserves adjoining water margins has a long history in Aotearoa1 New Zealand. The concept of the Queen’s Chain (that a strip alongside all water margins has been reserved for public access) is widely accepted and desired, although the actual setting aside of such public spaces was only sparsely effected. When early surveyors chose to set aside such a strip of land they labelled such spaces in many ways and frequently as roads, in recognition that their principal purpose was public access. Since then conservation and protection of ecosystems has assumed greater importance and water margin reserves are now provided to protect these values. The main attribute of these reserves is that they should attach to the water and move as the water moves.

Fixing boundaries

It is far from clear from a legislative point of view, why water margin reserves need to be fixed by survey. Legislation like the Land Acts 1908, 1924, 1948, Land Subdivision in Counties Act 1946, Local Government Act 1974 all made provision for some sort of marginal/esplanade reserve/strip to be set aside when land adjoining a water body was alienated or subdivided.2 No statement was made about the mobility of such reserves and there seemed to be no consideration about the natural movement of the water bodies. However, our cadastral system and the requirements to explicitly define parcels on plans and on the ground, led to a requirement that these reserves should be surveyed––the water boundary fixed by survey methods3 and then plotted on a plan as natural boundaries with dimensions and areas calculated and shown.4 The survey was essentially, just a snapshot in time of the position of the water at the time of survey, but it led to the assumption that the reserves were fixed in place.5 This led to the situation

that when water positions changed (and the reserve stayed where it was fixed) the reserve became separated from the water margin––it may have been inundated by the water, or ended up remote from the water. In any case, it no longer served the purpose for which it was established––public access to the water.6 The conclusion of the following assessment and discussion is that therefore, the reserves created and defined by the water margin should remain connected to the water.

Ambulatory Boundaries

The great benefit of water boundaries is that land proprietors can easily recognise their existence7 (except possibly when rivers dry up or are diverted), so they have advance notice that they may gain or lose land depending on the direction of any movement.

Water boundaries are ambulatory and are subject to the English common law doctrine of accretion and erosion. In New Zealand this doctrine can be difficult to reconcile with our cadastral system which seeks to achieve certainty about the location of boundaries. On the one hand, boundaries should be marked on the ground and be depicted on survey plans and the cadastral record.8 On the other hand, natural boundaries can be ambulatory––marked on the ground by the feature, and depicted by a wavy line on the survey plans and cadastral record. They are then subject to the gains and losses of accretion and erosion. The redefinition of these boundaries would seem, therefore to require research into the historic locations of water’s edge, bed and banks; where the ‘documentary’ boundary is; where the current water boundary is;9 and the evidence about how that boundary has moved (naturally? slowly? gradually? and imperceptibly?). The problem, of course, is that the doctrine of accretion and erosion only applies to the slow movement of the water boundary, and if there is rapid and perceptible movement10 then the legal boundary remains where it was originally depicted while the physical boundary moves––they become disconnected––a very unsatisfactory situation. It is my contention that we should recognise that water boundaries are ambulatory and boundaries should follow the water no matter how they move.11

When reserve strips are set aside from the water edge, they have a purpose that is only fulfilled if they remain connected to the water. Therefore the landward boundary of such a strip, which is an irregular boundary offset a specified distance from the water boundary, should follow the movement of the water (no matter how it moves). Unfortunately, if the landward boundary is depicted on a survey record as an irregular boundary then there is a temptation to think that the line is defined by the plan rather than by the offset from the natural boundary.12

Legislation

Crown Land Marginal Strips

Under the Land Act 1948, s 5813 provided for strips to be set aside upon the alienation of any Crown land alongside the sea, lakes and rivers. This meant that they were to remain as Crown Land when the adjoining land was alienated.

The Conservation Act 1987 created Marginal Strips14 for conservation purposes, but that Act lacked any specificity about how they were to be defined. The Conservation Law Reform Act 199015 amended the Conservation Act and provided for a Marginal Strip (s 24C: for conservation, public access and recreation) to be set aside (s 24(1)), and also deemed that any previously created strip (e.g. a s 58 strip) was also a Marginal Strip under this Act (s 24(3)). The rules also applied to any lake controlled by artificial means (e.g. Hydro dam)––a Marginal Strip is set aside 20m16 from the landward margin of the lake, or “from the maximum operating water level to the maximum flood level of the lake, whichever is greater” (s 24(2)).

While the legislation (s 24 D) requires Marginal Strips to be recorded on the title and shown on plans, it also explicitly states (s 24 D(7)) “Notwithstanding anything in the Land Transfer Act 2017, land reserved as Marginal Strip under section 24 shall not be required to be surveyed for the purposes of that Act.”17 The inference from these sections is that the survey plans should show a note (similar to the title record) that the allotments are subject to Part IVA of the Conservation Act 1987.

The Conservation Law Reform Act 1990 clarified the ambulatory nature of such boundaries and strips (s 24G (1) & (2)): “Where, for any reason, the shape of any foreshore or of the margin of any lake or reservoir or of any bay or inlet of any lake or reservoir [and the course of any river or stream] is altered and the alteration affects an existing marginal strip, a new marginal strip shall be deemed to have been reserved simultaneously with each and every such alteration.”

Both the Land Act 1948 and the Conservation Act 198718 describe Marginal Reserves being defined as abutting the landward margin of the water body (essentially the bank of any river or lake and the foreshore of the sea19), and 20m (66 feet) wide. It is quite clear therefore that these strips are defined by a dimension from the water margin and not by any survey which may have defined the water margin at a point in time.

Marginal Strips are noted on the survey plans and with a memorial on the title to the effect that the parcel is Subject to Part IV A Conservation Act 1987. 20 This gave adequate notice to both the title holder and (to the extent that the public may have access to such documents) to the public––providing notice that there was a public access strip adjoining a waterway available for use.

The benefits of such an arrangement include:

1. The public knows that if they remain within 20m (or whatever width is specified) from the margin of the water then they are within the public space;

2. The property owner knows where they can defend their exclusive occupation rights beyond the strip;

3. The movement of the strip is unencumbered by all the very complicated rules about riparian boundaries that would otherwise apply to any consideration of water margin movements (e.g. the doctrine of accretion and erosion);

4. The costs of definition should be minimal––merely requiring a generic notation.

In 2005, the Labour government proposed a general public easement alongside all waterways21, an announcement that was met with strong rural protests22 such that the government backed down on that proposal. Subsequently, a Minute from the Cabinet Business Committee23 in 2007 directed that “marginal strips are required to be surveyed and depicted on a Cadastral Survey Dataset (CSD) at the time when they are created by the disposal of Crown land”.24 This direction is contrary to s 24D(7) Conservation Act 1987. The power exercised by the Surveyor General to require marginal strips to be surveyed appears ultra vires the legislation.

Relatively recent surveys of Crown land25 which have provided survey definitions of marginal strips26 and have sought to fix previously defined marginal parcels and overlaid new strips over old strips, have required: 1) complicated analysis and matching of previous survey fixes; 2) expensive fieldwork and plan preparation, furthermore; 3) plans do not relate to any visible reference on the ground, and hence cannot be used by the public to navigate access along water margins;27 and 4) plans suggest that the strip is as defined by survey, rather than by reference to the water margin.28

Freehold Land Esplanade Reserves

There is a parallel thread of legislation prepared for the subdivision of freehold land when water boundaries are dealt with. Land Subdivision in Counties Act 194629, the Local Government Act 197430, and now, the Resource Management Act 1991 all provided for Esplanade Reserves

Under the RMA 1991, s 229 Esplanade Reserves and Strips may be set aside having one or more of the 3 purposes: conservation, access and recreation.31 The RMA allows for either a reserve to be set aside or a strip to be created upon the subdivision of land adjoining the sea, a lake or a river, but it provides for different rules about how they may move.

An Esplanade Reserve is set aside as a separate allotment that requires a survey definition which shows the water boundary alignment and the 20m offset as an irregular fixed boundary. By the normal common law rules about water boundaries, the water boundary is subject to the doctrine of accretion and erosion (so it moves with the water if that movement is natural, slow, gradual and imperceptible), but the landward boundary does not move. Under these conditions the width may expand or contract––possibly to nothing.

An Esplanade Strip is set aside by an instrument creating an interest similar to a public easement for esplanade purposes.32 The RMA provides for the Esplanade Strip to be fully ambulatory: s 233 (1) “Where, for any reason, the mark of any mean high water springs or the bank of any river or the margin of any lake alters, and the alteration affects an existing esplanade strip within an allotment, a new esplanade strip coinciding with such alteration shall be deemed to have been created simultaneously with each and every such alteration within the allotment.” s 237 states explicitly that “an esplanade strip shall not be required to be surveyed.” An esplanade strip can be easily notified (by a memorial on title) and defined (by direct reference to the water margin at any time).

The explicit purpose of both Marginal Strips and Esplanade Reserves is for conservation, public access and recreation.33 It would seem that the legislative intent for all marginal land is to be defined by reference to the water margin34 and for Esplanade Strips and Marginal Strips to be completely ambulatory. Esplanade Reserves are to have an ambulatory boundary with the water, but illogically, and perhaps unintentionally, a fixed upland boundary.

We return to the intent of this paper, by asking again, what is the need for, or why do we do a survey fix of such boundaries? That question about the benefits of surveying boundaries between water and adjoining land has been raised in other similar jurisdictions. Ballantyne (2016) has stated in the Canadian context: “There is little merit in seeking high precision in re-establishing water boundaries. Such a quest is foolish in light of survey practice, the observations of the courts and the vagaries of nature.”35 With this in mind, it seems unnecessary to spend time and effort in surveying and depicting on a plan, a boundary that is defined by the bank of a waterway when that waterway natural boundary provides a perfectly acceptable definition.

Case study

A survey of a Crown Pastoral lease alongside the Clutha River where the Roxburgh dam has flooded the river valley provides a useful case study. The lease was to be renewed, so this is a disposition of Crown Land which requires a marginal strip to be reserved.36 A 1960s plan clearly shows “Crown Land Reserved

from sale Sec 58 Land Act 1948” alongside the Clutha River. Beyond that is shown an irregular strip of land defined as “Land to be taken for the Development of Water Power”. There are notations on the inland boundary that the line relates to a contour level (although interestingly, down the course of the river there are contour step changes). This land was intended to be flooded, and no additional provision was made for a further marginal strip beyond the lake (in spite of the provision in s 58 Land Act 1948).37

When the river was flooded, the s 58 strip was mostly inundated and apparently did not migrate with the level of the water.38 So most of the marginal strip was, by surveyed definition, deemed to be extinguished and became lakebed.39

A new survey was undertaken to define a new Marginal Strip and depict it on a plan.40 The plan shows the boundary lines of a 40m wide strip.41 In some places the water margin boundary is shown as the contour level of the Maximum Operating Level (MOL) of Lake Roxburgh. The MOL line was not accurately surveyed but depicted as a natural boundary by a wavy line only approximately illustrating the contour.42 In other places a line purporting to be the upland edge of the previous marginal strip is shown specifically as ‘not defined by survey’. The boundary alignment was established from a digital aerial photo, converted to a topo plan to determine the contour line. The cadastral plan then strips away the reference to the water margin which would actually make sense to the public and leaves meaningless meandering lines on a plan. Toitū Te Whenua43 has required that there is no reference to the current water margin.

The current plan shows a documentary boundary illustrating how and where the previous boundaries of Crown land, old marginal strip44 and new marginal strip intersect. This is a purely graphical45 and theoretical exercise, complicating the survey significantly and providing no clarity or useful information about private or public property. 46

The Act states that for lakes

Figure 1. Diagram F extracted from SO 519306 CSD

Figure 1. Diagram F extracted from SO 519306 CSD

The current plan shows a documentary boundary illustrating how and where the previous boundaries of Crown land, old marginal strip44 and new marginal strip intersect. This is a purely graphical45 and theoretical exercise, complicating the survey significantly and providing no clarity or useful information about private or public property.46

There is some uncertainty about setting aside marginal strips. The Act states that for lakes controlled by artificial means marginal strips are ‘abutting the landward margin of any lake’.47 The landward margin seems not to be the same as the MOL. The MOL is a fixed contour line, not an ambulatory water line, and arguably, not a boundary line.

The “Land to be taken for the Development of Water Power…” is Crown Land held for that stated purpose. It is not a marginal strip. It is expected that the lake level is below the MOL and that the lease land, bounded by the MOL, is not connected to the water and so a marginal strip may not be required.48

It is apparent therefore that both the definition of the water bank, and the ambulatory nature of any marginal strip, makes the survey definition and detailed depiction of the strip both questionable and redundant. It is difficult to see how the plan diagram in Fig 1 can provide any useful reference for subsequent surveyors, let alone any members of the public seeking access rights confirmation.49

Cadastral survey guidelines

At some point TOITŪ TE WHENUA started requiring non-primary parcels50 to be depicted on plans both as a spatially illustrated parcel and with survey fixes to critical positions. Such plans will normally also have a notation to the effect that the water margin is a water boundary and the inland boundary shown as a specified width parallel to it is an irregular boundary. There may be some utility in illustrating these parcels on a plan, but the actual survey fix is for illustrative purposes only. The guidelines currently suggest that the documentary boundary must be respected. The survey fix will introduce confusion in later surveys when the water boundary may have moved and a new plan shows an underlying definition that is no longer relevant or coincident with the water margin. Any subsequent position should be described as a better or a current fix. Our cadastre should be flexible enough to accommodate such ambulatory boundaries.

Esplanade Reserves

A brief comment about Esplanade Reserves is relevant to this commentary, as is some acknowledgment that rivers are mobile and cannot always be controlled by physical or legal means.51 Esplanade Reserves are fixed by survey. The water boundary may move by accretion and erosion, but the landward boundary is fixed.

It would be logical (although perhaps inconvenient for an adjoining proprietor) for a statutory amendment to provide for any allotments defined by an esplanade reserve, to be subject to the gains and losses of ambulatory boundaries (as are esplanade strips and marginal strips) irrespective of the application of the doctrine of accretion and erosion. The doctrine stating that riparian boundaries will move with the slow and gradual movement of the bank, but will not move if the bank moves by avulsion is unhelpful and often defeats the purposes of these reserves.

Conclusion

It would appear that the main role for surveyors should be in deciding if a lake qualifies for a marginal strip by virtue of its area, and if a river qualifies by virtue of its width, whereupon the setting aside of a marginal strip is created. But what is achieved by surveying the strip, who needs to know and who benefits?

Obviously, the landowner needs to understand the extent of their property rights. The notation on their Record of Title would seem to be enough to notify them about the marginal strip provided for conservation, recreation and access, to be excluded from their title.52 The strip is very readily observed as the land immediately adjacent to the banks of a qualifying water body. The Department of Conservation can readily observe the land adjoining the river and apply any conservation requirements. The public can also easily see the river and exercise their access and recreation rights without needing a survey plan to show them. Proprietors of land adjoining any watercourse and/or any type of riparian strip should be prepared to accept their boundary is defined by the position of the water, not by any surveyed definition nor any lines on a plan, and that therefore their boundary will move.

Secondly we might ask, who benefits from having a marginal strip defined by survey? Licensed Cadastral Surveyors get interesting53 job opportunities. I suspect most marginal strips are being created over Crown owned remote land including high country pastoral leases. There is a very significant amount of survey work54 required over very large areas often requiring helicopter access.55 Class D photogrammetric surveys may simplify the field work, but the surveys remain complicated and expensive for the land owning client, the Crown.

If we consider the provision of clear and precise cadastral records that inform the public to be the goal of Toitū Te Whenua, marginal strip plans add no clarity. As discussed above, recent plans in Central Otago are virtually impossible for the lay public to interpret; as old boundaries weave around new boundaries and refer not to a river or lake margin, but to a maximum operating level contour. Furthermore, precise definition should not be important when the marginal strips move with the water margin.

Any survey fix of the river banks gives the impression of accuracy and precision, but the survey is likely to be incorrect as soon as it is completed because of the dynamic nature of water boundaries. Furthermore, an accurate survey of an ambulatory river bank just causes more problems for later surveyors who have to acknowledge a ‘documentary’ boundary and work out how to reconcile that with an observed boundary. The documentary boundary is never a boundary anyway––merely a depiction of the boundary at a point in time. The river bank should always be the boundary.

The 2007 government directive to survey marginal strips seems to have been prompted by an apparent lack of knowledge about whether and where they exist. The current survey record requires expert interpretation of law; of water margin changes; of previous survey methods and fixes. Having the marginal strips surveyed fails to provide such knowledge.

Between 1990 and 2007 ambulatory and unsurveyed marginal strips were created automatically56 upon alienation of Crown land. Tracking down all those titles may be time consuming but much less resource intensive than surveying them all. Mapping the strips on topographic plans or on aerial photos would be a colouring-in exercise rather than a surveying exercise.57

Marginal Strips remain mobile, legally and observationally fixed by reference to the water margin. There is nothing to be gained by surveying them.

Acknowledgement

I wish to thank Mark Geddes (LCS) for discussions, feedback and reviews of surveys, research and articles. Always thoughtful, critical and constructive in his professional practice.

Notes

1 While Aotearoa is becoming accepted as the appropriate Maori term for our islands, I acknowledge the concerns of some Kai Tahu rangatira that this undermines southern Maori naming conventions. https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/ngai-tahu-leader-let%E2%80%99s-not-rush-name-change

2 The wording in all these acts was reasonably consistent –– for example: Local Government Act 1974 (amend 1978): “there shall be set aside … for the purpose of providing access to the sea, lake, river, or stream, as the case may be, and to protect the environment, … a strip of land not less than 20 metres in width along the mean high-water mark of the sea and of its bays, inlets, or creeks, and along the margin of every lake with an area in excess of 8 hectares, and along the banks of all rivers and streams which have an average width of not less than 3 metres…”

3 For example by survey fix of river bank or MHWM and sometimes by photogrammetric interpretation

4 See Cadastral Survey Rules 2021. Part 3.

5 This assumption arose when subsequent surveys were required to show the reserve boundaries on new plans. Survey plans could often not be approved if water margins were shown in different locations from previous plans –– without full investigations of why and how that margin changed. Such work was avoided by adopting previous fixes and the plan locations then often became isolated from the water feature.

6 See commentary and examples of this in Strack, M. 2018. Natural Boundaries, Legal Definitions –– Making room for rivers. In Strack, et al. 2018. Riverscapes; Research essays on the social context of southern catchments of Aotearoa New Zealand. Catchments Otago. Dunedin.

7 This is why Natural Boundaries sit at the top of the hierarchy of evidence –– ‘This ranking flows from the proposition that most weight should be given to those matters about which a person is least likely to be mistaken.’ P F Dale, Cadastral Surveys within the Commonwealth, Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1976:26

8 Such lines are described and depicted in USA cadastral records as ‘Meander Lines’ –– which are specifically not intended as boundary lines

9 A documentary boundary is what is shown on a survey plan or record of title and identified by measurements or coordinates, as opposed to a boundary actually laid out and observed on the ground. A cadastral boundary normally only comes into effect when it is marked by some sort of monument or feature (like a river bank) on the ground. See Strack, M. 2017. Draw conclusions on the wall. Defence of the monumented cadastre. Australian Property Law Journal (2017) 26 APLJ 1:1-23

10 This is referred to as avulsion

11 This happens for stream boundaries for Marginal Strips created under the Conservation Act (since 1990), but not for other strips or reserves.

12 When those graphically depicted lines are shown on plans and areas are calculated, there is a suggestion of accuracy, certainty and permanence. Furthermore, once they are shown on the cadastral record they must be respected by subsequent surveys as documentary boundaries (see LINZ. 2014. Survey Prescription for surveys recording movable marginal strips for the purpose of Crown pastoral lease renewals.)

13 Previous Land Acts also had similar arrangements –– e.g. Land Act 1924 s 129)

14 Marginal Strips here is capitalised to emphasise that they are a creation of statute rather than just being a topographical descriptor

15 This Act repealed Section 58 Land Act 1948

16 The Department of Conservation can impose a wider strip if justified

17 While this paper has not considered the impacts of the newly passed Natural and Built Environment Act 2023, I note that s 581 (5) also includes the statement: “an esplanade strip must not be required to be surveyed.”

18 s 24 (2) Conservation Act 1987

19 Note that the foreshore was defined as the line of Mean High Water until 1991 when the RMA changed the foreshore definition to the line of Mean High Water Springs. For the bank of a river see Canterbury Regional Council v Dewhirst Land Co Ltd [2019] NZCA 486, and Strack, M. 2021, Where are the banks of a river? Property and the extent of rivers. Journal of Water Law. Vol 27:2:66-74.

20 s 24D (1) “Upon the registration of any disposition … the Registrar shall … record on the certificate of title for that land a statement to the effect that the land … is subject to this Part of this Act” and s 24D (5) “Every statement recorded on a certificate of title … shall be deemed to sufficiently protect any reservation made by this part of the Act …”

21 Office of the Minister for Rural Affairs, 2005. Walking Access in the New Zealand Outdoors. Cabinet Paper. Wellington. https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/Land%20access%20 decision%20Cabinet%20paper.pdf

22 The Orange Ribbon protest. Philippa Stevenson, June 2005. Orange ribbons say you're everything but welcome. New Zealand Herald. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_ id=1&objectid=10331738

23 reference CBC Min (07) 8/26

24 https://www.linz.govt.nz/kb/833

25 normally for the purposes of tenure review –– dealing with Pastoral leases

26 Qualifying Water Body (QWB) survey plans for marginal strip purposes.

27 See Fig 1 below. There is no reference to any monuments or features (like the water margin) by which a public user might exercise their access rights, or the adjoining owner may assert their property rights.

28 An example of such a survey and plan (SO 519306) is discussed below

29 s 11 (1) “there shall be set aside as reserved for public purposes a strip of land not less that sixty-six feet in width … along the mean high-water mark of the sea … along the margin of every lake … along the banks of all rivers…”

30 s 289 (1) “there shall be set aside as local purpose reserves for esplanade purposes … for the purpose of providing access to the sea, lake, river, or stream … and to protect the environment, … a strip of land not less than 20 metres in width along the mean high-water mark of the sea … along the margin of every lake … and along the banks of all rivers …”

31 Very similar to the purposes of marginal strips defined in the Conservation Act 1987 s 24C. I note in passing that the Natural and Built Environment Act 2023 s 609(b) adds a further purpose: ‘mitigating or reducing natural hazards or any risks of natural hazards’

32 See s 229 and Schedule 10 RMA 1991

33 s 24C Conservation Act 1987 and s 229 Resource Management Act 1991

34 MHWS or the bank of a lake or river

35 Ballantyne, B. 2016. Water Boundaries on Canada Lands: That fuzzy shadowland. Natural Resources Canada. Edmonton. at viii

36 Conservation Act 1987 s 24(1); Marginal Strips ‘There shall be deemed to be reserved from the sale or other disposition of any land by the Crown a strip of land …’

37 I note however, that some pastoral lease plans have been annotated explicitly with the requirement to set aside the marginal strips.

38 I argue that the original s 58 strip should have been ambulatory, but for the fact that the lake was raised before 1990 when a s 58 strip became a Conservation Act ambulatory Marginal Strip

39 Beyond the scope of this paper, but an issue will arise when Roxburgh Dam may be decommissioned within the next 30 years (https://mightyclutha.blogspot.com/2010/02/decommissioning-roxburghdam.html ), the lake will revert to a river gorge, and these boundaries will become redundant.

40 SO 519306

41 The Minister apparently directed an extended width here –– s 24AA Conservation Act 1987 ––probably because of the rugged cliff-like topography

42 The contour was not measured on the ground, and the plan depicting the alignment was large scale so this documentary boundary is only vaguely prescribed.

43 AKA - LINZ Land Information New Zealand

44 The previously defined s 58 strips (Land Act 1948) became s 24(3) marginal strips (Conservation Act) in 1987

45 Amounting to a tracing of previous plans

46 This is the result of the highly prescriptive QWB guidelines from Toitū Te Whenua, rather than a useful and pragmatic surveying decision.

47 Conservation Act 1987 s 24 (2) “There shall be deemed to be reserved from the sale or other disposition by the Crown of any land extending along and abutting the landward margin of any lake controlled by artificial means a strip of land that—(a) is 20 metres wide; or (b) has a width extending from the maximum operating water level to the maximum flood level of the lake,—whichever is the greater.”

48 A 1999 court decision, Tram Holdings Ltd v Attorney-General CP245/96, has ruled that a marginal strip under s24 of the Conservation Act 1987 is not created if Crown land being disposed of lies within 20 metres of a water margin but does not abut the margin. https://www.linz.govt.nz/kb/833

49 I reiterate, this is the result of administrative rules rather than the surveyor

50 A non-primary parcel is a portion of land that that essentially enables the transfer of some rights to another i.e. usually limits the exclusive rights that would normally be associated with a primary parcel. A movable marginal strip is one such non-primary parcel

51 See Strack, M. & Scott, A. 2019. Making Room for Rivers. New Zealand Journal of Environmental Law. 23:249-273

52 A marginal strip defined on Crown Land for the purposes of tenure review is a disposition from the Crown but the area they cover is not deducted from the lease/title area.

53 but not necessarily lucrative.

54 primarily identifying stream widths

55 See Hannah Reader. 2020. Behind the Black Box, Marginal Strip creation in 2020. Surveying+Spatial. 102;11 June 2020.

56 Note Licensed Cadastral Surveyor Hannah Reader’s commentary (2020) about marginal strips –– while legally they may be automatic, there is nothing automatic about the current surveying requirements.

57 One possible way to better inform the public is to ensure that the Walking Access Commission’s WAMS maps show marginal strips.

Why Professions Have Ethics

Dr Brian J Coutts FNZIS FRICS FRGS MNZPI

Abstract

The concept of professions is an old one, dating from English medieval times. They originated in the then Universal Christian Church and therefore embodied moral standards. Many new professions formed following the European Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution and continue to do so. Professional status brings both rights and responsibilities and requires membership of a professional body. The rights include societal status and the ability to earn higher than normal incomes, while the responsibilities include impartiality, independence of thought and practice, and integrity embodied in ethical standards. To be effective, professional ethical standards must be codified, agreement to adhere to them given by members, and bring penalties if breached. Investigations into breaches of ethical standards must abide by the principles of natural justice and be considered by an unbiased agency. Without these requirements an occupation cannot claim the status of a profession.

The Origins of Professions

The concept of an occupation being a “profession” has its origins in the Universal (Catholic) Christian Church. Until the 18th century there were considered to be only three professions: the church (the clergy), medicine, and law. To enter either of the latter professions it was first necessary to have entered the Church as a member of the clergy before then undergoing specialised training in either of the other two (O’Day, 2000). Becoming a member of the clergy required the taking of vows of poverty, chastity and service. The vows required not only allegiance to the church itself, but a promise to abide by basic Christian principles,

including faithfulness, honesty and integrity. The word “profession” comes from an entrant to the clergy being required to “profess” specific beliefs—those of the church (Carr-Saunders & Wilson, 1933).

In modern English vernacular the word “profession” and its derivatives, namely; “professional” and “professionalism”, have become greatly overused. “Professional” is often used to distinguish a person who is paid for what they do from an amateur, who is not paid. Professional sportspeople are a widely recognised example. “Professionalism” is a way of working or thinking, an attitude, and a way of performing tasks that is better than the norm. While a member of a profession is likely to be professional and exhibit professionalism, these traits do not make a person a member of a profession. A person becomes a member of a profession when they join the professional body or the learned society of that profession (Coutts, 2017).

When is an Occupation a Profession?

Much has been written in the last 100 years with respect to what attributes an occupation must exhibit in order to be considered a profession. A profession, and members of that profession, hold a special and privileged place in modern society, though possibly not as special in the 21st century as it was in the 19th and 20th centuries. During the 20th century many occupations strove to be professions and have rightly claimed professional status.

Abraham Flexner wrote a seminal work in 1915 regarding the status of social workers, and subsequent writers on the subject of professions have largely reinterpreted his findings, made use of different terminology but, in general, have not strayed far from his original hypothesis. In summary he propounded that in order for an occupation to be considered a profession it must meet the following criteria: be applied in an unbiased manner to specialised and complex problems; have a theoretical basis that is educationally transferable; require its members to establish and maintain defined standards of competence; and have members who place their client’s and the public interest ahead of their own.

While not specifically stated, it is an easy deduction to conclude that in order for any occupation to claim professional status, there must be an independent professional body or learned society to define the professional standards. The standards would apply to both technical knowledge and behavioural values, and for any individual to claim professional status they must belong to such a body. It should be noted that technical or educational standards alone are not sufficient to establish an occupation as a profession. Standards of behaviour, or ethics, are the essential difference between the professions and other occupations.

The Benefits of Professional Status

The “behavioural standards”, ethics, are the defining difference when added to the other requirements for an occupation to be considered a profession. But why are ethics so important?

Members of professions are granted status above the norm in society. Such status carries with it both rights and responsibilities. First, members of professions have a capability to charge a significantly higher fee for their services than others, usually on an hourly, or a portion of an hour, basis. That is, consultation with a member of a profession comes with a premium fee. The premium is justified by the cost of years of education and training that is required to meet the standards set by the professional body, the maintenance of them, and continued membership of the professional body.

It is also justified by the expectation that the advice being given will be unbiased, that is, it will be fair and honest, hiding no relevant information and raising no expectations beyond those identified by the facts. It will be reasoned, factual, rational, and evidentially based. It may further include an interpretation of the facts based on the judgement and experience of the individual member of the profession. However, such opinion will be clearly identifiable from the evidence upon which it is based.

Such advice will not be, necessarily, “what the client wants to hear” but what the evidence indicates. As a result, the client may make informed decisions based on that advice, both fact and opinion, and are able to trust that the advice is not biased by any outside influences, such as the interests of the adviser or other parties. In a word, the client can expect to trust the advice of a member of a profession. In any professional practice, building and maintaining that trust is the prime focus of the member of any profession––that is, it is their reputation, that being the only commodity they have to sell.

International Ethics

An International Ethical Standards Coalition (IESC) was established in 2014 for those professions involved in land, property, construction, infrastructure and related professions. In 2016 the IESC their International Ethical Standards were published. These Standards identified 10 headings or principles, namely: accountability; confidentiality; conflict of interest; financial responsibility; integrity; lawfulness; reflection; standards of service; transparency; trust.

This list is arranged alphabetically and could be interpreted to include redundancies. A number of these principles could fall under the most generic of those identified, that of integrity. Acting with integrity is at the heart of the work of a member of any profession and is almost synonymous with the concept

of ethics. There are other examples of international professional ethical standards pertinent to specific professions such as accountancy. The number of principles defined range from three to twelve. The best known is likely to be the Hippocratic Oath taken by the medical profession in many countries.

Membership of the IESC spans the planet and includes the Commonwealth Association of Surveying and Land Economy (CASLE) and the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG), and professional bodies from every continent. For New Zealand, the Property Institute (PINZ), Building Surveyors (NZIBS) and the Quantity Surveyors (NZIQS) are members. Membership implies an agreement to the principles defined in the IESC publication.

What are Ethics

It is an appropriate point at which to ask the question “What exactly are ethics?”. The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) offers an excellent start with the definition “moral principles that govern a person’s behaviour or the conducting of an activity”. This indicates a clear tie-back to the profession of vows inherent in professional status at the very origins of the concept as it began in the church. At its heart it reflects a concept that is central to all religions, that of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

As a first criterion, ethics require that a person be both open and honest Honesty seems self-evident from the definition. Openness requires that no information be withheld from the client. It may be tempting to the advisor not to include information that might be detrimental to the task being undertaken or advised upon. Such action would be unethical and as such, unprofessional. The cadastral surveyor in particular is likely to face situations like this. In advising on a boundary definition, a cadastral surveyor must respect the boundary of the client but also that of the neighbour. The cadastral surveyor cannot define a boundary that favours their client if the evidence does not support it. In systems where boundaries are guaranteed by the State, the ethical framework is compounded in that the State’s interest must also be taken into account.

The members of the Surveying profession are therefore required to give unbiased or disinterested advice on any matter that they are consulted on. That status of the unbiased consultant must reflect the facts of a situation without fear of retribution or contradiction. Nothing should be left out of the considerations of that advice because it does not support the client’s interests. In general, any member of a profession should give the same response to a request for advice when it relates to the same facts. Matters that are a reflection of analysis of meaning, interpretation or opinion as a consequence, however, may differ. It is imperative, therefore, that in reporting to a client that the facts are clearly separated from any conclusions drawn from them. These requirements lead to other expressions that

reflect the characteristics of ethics, those being honesty and integrity.

As a result, the client is entitled to an expectation of the highest standards of honesty, integrity and independence in the personal conduct of a member of a profession, in addition to the highest standards of technical knowledge and its application, as well as acknowledgement of any limitations of them.

Ethics Must Be Codified

Every professional body must express the standards of technical knowledge and behavioural integrity for admission to it. Most professions have delegated the meeting of its requirements for technical knowledge of its subject to tertiary educational institutions, the universities. While these institutions can discuss ethics in a theoretical and educational context, they are not able to truly test the adherence to them by individuals in any meaningful way.

It is therefore incumbent on the exiting members of the profession to instil appropriate ethical standards in incoming members in the period of their postgraduate induction into the profession. In doing so they must not only discuss and examine them, but they must also demonstrate them by their own conduct. Ethical standards require more than lip service by practitioners; they must be lived in practice as well as in theory. Furthermore, such standards cannot be left at the office when it is time to go home. Those ethical standards must be incorporated into a person’s way of life and permeate all their activities, professionally, personally and privately.

Professional bodies must not only subscribe to the ethical principles, but they must also enshrine them into a code. That code should delineate the standards required in the practice of the profession. Such a code must also be publicly available. Those who wish to engage a member of a profession must be able to see the standards that will be applied when they choose a member of a profession rather than someone who is merely technically qualified. They need to know that honesty, integrity and independence of thought and action are what they are purchasing.

Finally, any code of ethics must include an explanation of what client’s rights are when they feel those standards have not been met. The code must therefore include a process for receiving complaints, and there must be penalties that can be imposed if or when breaches are found to have occurred. For this to happen there must be some independent and credible authority that can ensure that natural justice can prevail and that protects the rights and responsibilities of both the complainant (the client) and the practitioner. Complainants tend to be suspicious of professional bodies whose member’s actions are prosecuted before the defendant’s own colleagues. It is critical to the profession’s credibility that justice is not merely exercised but that it be seen to be so.

Natural justice

There are two arms to the principles of natural justice. The first is that no one can be the judge of their own case. The second is the right to a fair hearing. Not judging one’s own case seems self-evident but does need to be fully appreciated when dealing with clients who have legitimate complaints. Complainants must be assured that if their complaint escalates to a dispute, then there are independent authorities to which they may appeal for justice and who will adopt an impartial view of the issues (Robson and Page, 2020).

The right to a fair hearing requires some greater explanation. In the first instance appropriate and timely notice must be given of the time and place for such a hearing. This should allow the parties to properly prepare their positions. The hearing must give the defendant the opportunity to hear the case being made against them, consider the evidence presented by the complainant, and to the prepare a statement in rebuttal, challenging any or all of the evidence or offering an explanation of their conduct and any extenuating circumstances. Full disclosure of all relevant facts is a requirement of a hearing, and the ability of the defendant to face their accuser. Those hearing the evidence and making a judgement on whether breaches have occurred must not only be open-minded and unbiased in their considerations, but they must also be seen to be so.

For professional bodies, involving competent people who have no interest in the profession, or the individuals concerned in the dispute, is essential. Members of other professions usually make useful and desirable candidates for a hearings panel. In the end, decisions on breaches of professional ethical codes must be based on logical and rational evidence and made by impartial judges.

Conclusion

Professional ethics distinguish members of a profession from the rest of society. Compliance with the ethical code, when combined with technical competence, brings with it rights and responsibilities. The rights include personal status and reputation, and above average income. The responsibilities include being trustworthy, impartial, rational and responsible.

In order for an occupation to be granted the status of a profession, its requirements must include an ethical code. That code must be in the public domain, it must specify the manner of accepting complaints about breaches to that code, and must indicate the nature of penalties that will be applied should a member of that profession be found in breach of the code, that is, of being guilty of unprofessional conduct. The professional body must have empowered itself to enforce the penalties for such breaches.

While ethics and morals are closely linked, they are separate and distinct. Morals are a personal set of beliefs in appropriate behaviour, while ethics are a code of behaviour or practice that is defined by an external body. In some cases, an individual’s moral code will include those same or similar standards as a code of ethics. The effective difference is that a breach of an ethical code when detected, will have consequences with respect to the promulgator of the code, whereas breaches of one’s own moral code will not, other than one’s own conscience.

Finally, ethics cannot be left at the workplace––they pervade the life of a member of a profession. When a member of a profession departs from their workplace, or is outside the generally agreed working hours, the ethical standards remain with them. Ethics are about reputation. Reputation is hard won, but easily lost. Such loss of reputation may involve matters outside the normal conduct of business; ethics are, in fact, a way of life.

References

Carr-Saunders, A. M., & Wilson., P. A. (1933). The Professions: Oxford at the Clarendon Press.

Coutts, B. J. (2017). The Influence of Technology on the Land Surveying Profession. Unpublished PhD Thesis. University of Otago.

Flexner, Abraham. (1915). Is Social Work a Profession? Paper presented to the National Conference of Charities and Corrections at the Forty-Second annual session, Baltimore, Maryland.

International Ethical Standards Coalition. (2016). Accessed 20 January 2021. https://ricstest.files. wordpress.com/2016/12/international-ethics-standards-final.pdf

O’Day, Rosemary. (2000). The Professions in Early Modern England, 1450-1800: Servants of the Commonweal. Harlow, England: Longman. An imprint of Pearson Education.

Pearsall, Judy. (Ed). (1998). The New Oxford Dictionary of English. Oxford University Press, Oxford, England.

Robson, W.A. and Page, E.C. (Accessed 25 June 2020) Britannica www.britannica.com/topic/administrative-law/The-ombudsman#ref36925.

Demand for, supply of, and diversity among surveyors: Fear and loathing in Alberta

Brian Ballantyne1 & Ceilidh Ballantyne

Abstract

The Alberta Land Surveyors Association (ALSA) fears its professional governance mandate is eroding. In furtherance of its mandate, ALSA posed three questions in 2022: How many ALSs are needed by 2033, can this need be met, will ALSA be diverse? Our answers were that 575 ALSs will be needed, conventional supply cannot meet demand, and ALSA is not diverse. We set out five strategies:

• Change the narrative to surveyors solving problems and addressing issues.

• Engage with Grade 9 and Grade 12 students to market surveying as a career.

• Liaise with post-secondary schools to support surveying as a career.

• Attract foreign-trained land surveyors (FTLS).

• Reform the articling process to retain more Articling Pupils.

The 15 recommendations will bear fruit by 2028, when 34 new ALSs will be supplied annually from six sources, resulting in a cumulative imbalance of 0 ALSs by 2033. At its April 2023 AGM, ALSA adopted the three best recommendations, which include hiring staff: One to focus on young students, another to focus on Articling Pupils and FTLS.

Abbreviations used in this article

AAIP Alberta Advantage Immigration Program

ALSA Alberta Land Surveyors Association

AOLS Association of Ontario Land Surveyors

ABCLS Association of British Columbia Land Surveyors

AGM Annual General Meeting

APT Articling Pupil Tutoring

APEGA Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta

ATP Accelerated Technical Pathway

BCIT British Columbia Institute of Technology

BCLS British Columbia Land Surveyor

BIPOC Black Indigenous and People of Colour

CPD Continuing Professional Development

CBEPS Canadian Board of Examiners for Professional Surveyors

CSLB New Zealand Cadastral Surveyors Licensing Board

FTLS Foreign Trained Land Surveyors

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GFCF Gross Fixed Capital Formation

GoA Government of Alberta

GPS Global Positioning System

LCS Licensed Cadastral Surveyor

LSA Law Society of Alberta

NAIT Northern Alberta Institute of Technology

OLS Ontario Land Surveyor

RPA Robotic Process Automation

RPR Real Property Report

SAIT Southern Alberta Institute of Technology

SLS Sakatchewan Land Surveyor

UC University of Calgary

UNB University of New Brunswick

UAV Unmanned Automated Vehicle

Introduction

We were somewhere around a breakthrough, in the midst of the second draft, when the doubts started to take hold.2 To wit, this is about surveyors in Alberta, whereas the audience is primarily surveyors in New Zealand. Nevertheless, this should resonate. After all, the same demand/supply/diversity issues plague both surveying professions.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

ALSA retained us in September 2022 to answer three questions:

• How many Alberta Land Surveyors (ALSs) are needed by 2033?

ALSA retained us in September 2022 to answer three questions:

• Can post-secondary schools meet this need for ALSs? If not, then how can barriers be overcome to meet this need?

• Will ALSs represent the diversity of Alberta?

- How many Alberta Land Surveyors (ALSs) are needed by 2033?

This article sets out our findings, forecasts, strategies, and recommendations;3 and concludes with ALSA’s responses to the study since April 2023.

- Can post-secondary schools meet this need for ALSs? If not, then how can barriers be overcome to meet this need?

- Will ALSs represent the diversity of Alberta?

Context 1: Relevance to New Zealand surveyors

4

This article sets out our findings, forecasts, strategies, and recommendations;3 and concludes with ALSA’s responses to the study since April 2023. Context 1: Relevance to New Zealand surveyors4

Alberta has a similar population to New Zealand (4.6 M for AB and 5.1 M for NZ - Figure 1), supported by a variant of the same legal system and boundary principles, and with similar settlement, urbanization, demographics, and economic reliance on primary resources.

Alberta has a similar population to New Zealand (4.6 M for AB and 5.1 M for NZ - Figure 1), supported by a variant of the same legal system and boundary principles, and with similar settlement, urbanization, demographics, and economic reliance on primary resources.

6,000,000

2,500,000 3,375,000 4,250,000 5,125,000

AB pop NZ pop

Figure 1: Alberta & New Zealand population trends (1996-2020).

There are some discrepancies between the two jurisdictions, including the numbers of surveyors and the type of development. New Zealand has 707 LCSs, whereas Alberta has 404 ALSs. Since 1996, Alberta has built many more multi-residential dwellings than New Zealand, which require less survey effort than single-family subdivisions (Figure 2). Thus, New Zealand employs more surveyors per dwelling unit than Alberta.5

There are some discrepancies between the two jurisdictions, including the numbers of surveyors and the type of development. New Zealand has 707 LCSs, whereas Alberta has 404 ALSs. Since 1996, Alberta has built many more multi-residential dwellings than New Zealand, which require less survey effort than single-family subdivisions (Figure 2). Thus, New Zealand employs more surveyors per dwelling unit than Alberta.5

3 Ballantyne. Demand for, supply of, and diversity among AlberTa Land Surveyors to 2023. Report to ALSA. 86pp. February 5, 2023. We also looked into the distribution of ALSs, and the demand/supply/diversity of technicians. 4 Sue Hanham of Waimate focused on the lessons from New Zealand.

Figure 1: Alberta & New Zealand population trends (1996-2020).

Nevertheless, New Zealand and Alberta surveyors have similar laments, focusing on low supply and poor diversity. Over two-years (2019-2021), the New Zealand Cadastral Surveyors Licensing Board (CSLB), licensed 75 Licenced Cadastral Surveyors (LCSs), from three sources: 53 recent university graduates; 9 FTLS immigrants; 13 reinstated. Despite this intake, the total number of LCSs only increased by 20 (from 687 to 707); 55 LCSs did not renew their licenses. The CSLB acknowledged the tension. On the one hand, “there continues to be a demand for … surveyors to meet the needs of land development.” On the other hand, this demand raises the issue of “how to attract more students to the BSurv course, who then feed into our future LCSs.”6

This tension is made starker over a longer term. Since 2010, there have been significant increases in real GDP (41%), in population (19%), and in real GDP per capita (15%) in New Zealand.7 Yet, over that same period, the number of LCSs has declined from 727 to 707 (-3%),8 suggesting that supply is not meeting demand. As you know, various strategies are being employed (or discussed) to address these laments, but this article will not be carrying coals to Newcastle.9

Nevertheless, New Zealand and Alberta surveyors have similar laments, focusing on low supply and poor diversity. Over two-years (2019-2021), the New Zealand Cadastral Surveyors Licensing Board (CSLB), licensed 75 Licenced Cadastral Surveyors (LCSs), from three sources: 53 recent university graduates; 9 FTLS immigrants; 13 reinstated. Despite this intake, the total number of LCSs only increased by 20 (from 687 to 707); 55 LCSs did not renew their licenses. The CSLB acknowledged the tension. On the one hand, “there continues to be a demand for … surveyors to meet the needs of land development.” On the other hand, this demand raises the issue of “how to attract more students to the BSurv course, who then feed into our future LCSs.”6

Context 2: Professional governance

This tension is made starker over a longer term. Since 2010, there have been significant increases in real GDP (41%), in population (19%), and in real GDP per capita (15%) in New Zealand.7 Yet, over that same period, the number of LCSs has declined from 727 to 707 (-3%),8 suggesting that supply is not meeting demand. As you know, various strategies are being employed (or discussed) to address these laments, but this article will not be carrying coals to Newcastle.9

ALSA is the professional regulatory organization responsible for regulating surveying, and it is in the public interest that the number, competency, and diversity of ALSs are sufficient to serve Albertans. This means ensuring that the needs/demands of the public for surveying services is met (supply), while reflecting the characteristics and aspirations of Albertans (diversity). Indeed, maintaining the two links, between postsecondary education and surveying capacity, and between surveying capacity and the public’s needs/demands, is a major part of the ALSA 2022-23 Strategic Plan

Context 2: Professional governance

6 CSLB. Annual Report 2020-21

7 Statistics New Zealand. Tables DPE058AA and SNE004AA.

8 Although the five-year trend (2016-2021) shows an increase from 676 to 707 LCSs. CSLB Bulletins

9 S+SNZ Stakeholder Workshop. November 2019.

ALSA is the professional regulatory organization responsible for regulating surveying, and it is in the public interest that the number, competency, and diversity of ALSs are sufficient to serve Albertans. This means ensuring that the needs/demands of the public for surveying services is met (supply), while reflecting the characteristics and aspirations of Albertans (diversity). Indeed, maintaining the two links, between post-secondary education and surveying capacity, and between surveying capacity and the public’s needs/demands, is a major part of the ALSA 2022-23 Strategic Plan.

Figure 2: Alberta & New Zealand housing starts.

Figure 2: Alberta & New Zealand housing starts.

ALSA’s role is heightened owing to changes in how Alberta professional associations are to be regulated by Bill 23––Professional Governance Act, introduced in 2022. As a professional regulatory organization established under the Land Surveyors Act, ALSA is “to protect and serve the public interest and the interest of public safety by safeguarding life, health and the environment and the property and economic interests of the public.”10 This means that ALSA “administers affairs and regulates its registrants in a manner that protects the public interest and the interest of public safety.”11

In November 2022, the Mandate Letter to the Minister of Skilled Trades and Professions directed him to: “Implement the Professional Governance Act to ensure the adoption of a uniform governance framework for all professional regulatory organizations.”12 Since the provincial election in May 2023, however, little has been heard of Bill 23. The Ministry of Skilled Trades and Professions was supplanted by the Ministry of Jobs, Economy and Trade, whose Mandate Letter to the Minister made no mention of professional governance.13 Apparently, the Alberta government “remains committed to progressing the Bill 23 through the legislative process.”14 We suspect that Bill 23 is merely dormant, given the tendency in Alberta and other jurisdictions, such as British Columbia,15 to oversee the professions more closely in the public interest.

This legislative oversight is feared and loathed by ALSA. At its April 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM), the President admitted that he was “nervous,” not least because Bill 23 allows ALSA to be replaced if it is not acting in the public interest or “is not viable in the long term economically.”16 This concern speaks directly to the supply and diversity of ALSs. At the same AGM, a former President railed that Bill 23 is merely creating “more red tape” and “does not make much sense,” because it lumps disparate professions and trades together. He promised that “he will do anything he can to ensure that it is not reintroduced.”17 The perceived threat posed by Bill 23 inspired ALSA to commission the study for which we were retained.

Context 3: ALSA baseline data

After peaking at 470 in 2015, the number of ALSs declined to 423 in 2021 and to 404 by September 2022, owing to weak economic activity and demographic aging (Figure 7). The pandemic hastened this diminution, with record levels of ALSs retiring in 2020. Of the 404 ALSs as of 2022, 32 are women (7.9%). In 2016, 24 of the 333 ALSs were women (7.2%). There are 41 Articling Pupils, so the ratio of Articling Pupils to ALSs is 10%. This is the lowest ratio since at least 1996; it has tended to be 25% (Figure 3).

10%. This is the lowest ratio since at least 1996; it has tended to be 25% (Figure 3).

10%. This is the lowest ratio since at least 1996; it has tended to be 25% (Figure 3).

3:

The median age of ALSs is 45 (Figure 4). The average age at retirement is falling. In 2016, the average age was 66; in 2019, it was 63; in 2021-22, it was 55. Although this is another disquieting trend, it does mean that there are youngish ex-ALSs who might be enticed back to ALSA as the economy soars.18

The median age of ALSs is 45 (Figure 4). The average age at retirement is falling. In 2016, the average age was 66; in 2019, it was 63; in 2021-22, it was 55. Although this is another disquieting trend, it does mean that there are youngish ex-ALSs who might be enticed back to ALSA as the economy soars.18

The median age of ALSs is 45 (Figure 4). The average age at retirement is falling. In 2016, the average age was 66; in 2019, it was 63; in 2021-22, it was 55. Although this is another disquieting trend, it does mean that there are youngish ex-ALSs who might be enticed back to ALSA as the economy soars.18

15 23

Figure 4: Age distribution for ALSs (as of 2022).

Almost 80% of ALSs graduated from four post-secondary schools – University of Calgary (UC), University of New Brunswick (UNB), Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) (Figure 5). The origins of the remaining 20% are distributed evenly among overseas and Canadian post-secondary schools.19 Since 1996, ALSA has welcomed 36 ALSs from non-articling sources: ALSs who un-retired (4), and surveyors from other jurisdictions through interprovincial mobility (32).20 This works out to two ALSs per year, on average.

18 Dramatic foreshadowing; see the supply analysis.

19 We have such data for 385 of the 404 ALSs.

Almost 80% of ALSs graduated from four post-secondary schools – University of Calgary (UC), University of New Brunswick (UNB), Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) (Figure 5). The origins of the remaining 20% are distributed evenly among overseas and Canadian post-secondary schools.19 Since 1996, ALSA has welcomed 36 ALSs from non-articling sources: ALSs who un-retired (4), and surveyors from other jurisdictions through interprovincial mobility (32).20 This works out to two ALSs per year, on average.

20 ALSA. Executive Director. December 14, 2022.

18 Dramatic foreshadowing; see the supply analysis.

19 We have such data for 385 of the 404 ALSs. 20 ALSA. Executive Director. December 14, 2022.

Almost 80% of ALSs graduated from four post-secondary schools––University of Calgary (UC), University of New Brunswick (UNB), Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) (Figure 5). The origins of the remaining 20% are distributed evenly among overseas and Canadian post-secondary schools.19 Since 1996, ALSA has welcomed 36 ALSs from non-articling sources: ALSs who un-retired (4), and surveyors from other jurisdictions through inter-provincial mobility (32).20 This works out to two ALSs per year, on average.

Figure

Ratio of Articling Pupils to ALSs, 1996 to 2023.

Figure 4: Age distribution for ALSs (as of 2022).

Figure 3: Ratio of Articling Pupils to ALSs, 1996 to 2023.

Figure 3: Ratio of Articling Pupils to ALSs, 1996 to 2023.

Figure 4: Age distribution for ALSs (as of 2022).

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

of

Overseas

COGS

U of A College

BCIT

Other unIv

Univ - Geomatics

Ont College CONA

Figure 5: Most ALSs are graduates of only four post-secondary schools (as of 2022).

Figure 5: Most ALSs are graduates of only four post-secondary schools (as of 2022).

Figure 5: Most ALSs are graduates of only four post-secondary schools (as of 2022).

ALSs are distributed across 42 communities, with 171 based in Calgary, 71 based in Edmonton, 40 based in communities with populations greater than 50K (Red Deer, Lethbridge, Airdrie, Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, Grande Prairie), and 56 based in smaller communities throughout Alberta (Figure 6).

ALSs are distributed across 42 communities, with 171 based in Calgary, 71 based in Edmonton, 40 based in communities with populations greater than 50K (Red Deer, Lethbridge, Airdrie, Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, Grande Prairie), and 56 based in smaller communities throughout Alberta (Figure 6). Figure

ALSs are distributed across 42 communities, with 171 based in Calgary, 71 based in Edmonton, 40 based in communities with populations greater than 50K (Red Deer, Lethbridge, Airdrie, Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, Grande Prairie), and 56 based in smaller communities throughout Alberta (Figure 6).

Figure 6: ALSs capture 75% of Alberta by area (within 160 km of 41 offices).

Figure 6: ALSs capture 75% of Alberta by area (within 160 km of 41 offices).

Of are employed in the private sector in Alberta.21 The remainder – 66 ALSs – work in government (provincial and municipal), at NAIT or for ALSA; are functionally retired or unemployed; work exclusively in non-cadastral disciplines (e.g. construction); or live outside Alberta.22 Of the 338 ALSs in the private

Of the 404 ALSs, 338 ALSs are employed in the private sector in Alberta.21 The remainder – 66 ALSs – work in government (provincial and municipal), at NAIT or for ALSA; are functionally retired or unemployed; work exclusively in non-cadastral disciplines (e.g. construction); or live outside Alberta.22 Of the 338 ALSs in the private

21 ALSA. Roll of members. January 1, 2022.

22 Six ALSs work exclusively in non-cadastral surveying, 14 ALSs work for government/NAIT/ALSA, and 27 ALSs live/work outside Alberta.

21 ALSA. Roll of members. January 1, 2022.

22 Six ALSs work exclusively in non-cadastral surveying, 14 ALSs work for government/NAIT/ALSA, and 27 ALSs live/work outside Alberta.

Of the 404 ALSs, 338 ALSs are employed in the private sector in Alberta.21 The remainder––66 ALSs––work in government (provincial and municipal), at NAIT or for ALSA; are functionally retired or unemployed; work exclusively in non-cadastral disciplines (e.g. construction); or live outside Alberta.22 Of the 338 ALSs in the private sector, 67 work in management, cost estimating or business development, “dealing with clients on contracts and rates, and reviewing major proposals”23

sector, 67 work in management, cost estimating or business development, “dealing with clients on contracts and rates, and reviewing major proposals”23

The result is that 271 ALSs author products (i.e. sign plans and other survey documents) across two distinct types of survey. The best estimate is that 55% of ALSs work in municipal development (N = 149 ALSs), and 45% of ALSs work in resource extraction or construction (N = 122 ALSs).24 There is little overlap.

The result is that 271 ALSs author products (i.e. sign plans and other survey documents) across two distinct types of survey. The best estimate is that 55% of ALSs work in municipal development (N = 149 ALSs), and 45% of ALSs work in resource extraction or construction (N = 122 ALSs).24 There is little overlap.

Methodology

Methodology

What we did not do

What we did not do

We did not link the ALS demand forecast solely to Alberta population projections (Figure 7). When ALSA started in 1911, there was one ALS per 5,100 people. Since 1996, the per capita rate has varied from one ALS per 9,000 people to one ALS per 11,500 people. Population is integrated with economic activity and is part of the demand analysis (inherent in the economic framework and linked to housing starts).

We did not link the ALS demand forecast solely to Alberta population projections (Figure 7). When ALSA started in 1911, there was one ALS per 5,100 people. Since 1996, the per capita rate has varied from one ALS per 9,000 people to one ALS per 11,500 people. Population is integrated with economic activity and is part of the demand analysis (inherent in the economic framework and linked to housing starts).

AB pop (millions), left ALSs, right

Figure 7: Tenuous relationship between Alberta population and number of ALSs (1996-2022).

What we did do

What we did do

We divided the ALS analysis according to demand (which focused on economic indicators and forecasts) and supply (which also dealt with diversity and distribution issues). Both analyses began with the same membership, received from ALSA:

We divided the ALS analysis according to demand (which focused on economic indicators and forecasts) and supply (which also dealt with diversity and distribution issues). Both analyses began with the same membership, received from ALSA:

- The number of ALSs from 1996 to September 2022.

- The number of Articling Pupils from 1996 to September 2022.

• The number of ALSs from 1996 to September 2022.

- An anonymized list of ALSs for 2016-2022, including gender, age, postsecondary school, year of commission, year of subtraction, and place of work.

• The number of Articling Pupils from 1996 to September 2022.

23 Interview. January 4, 2023.

24 ALSA. Director of Practice Review. October 19, 2022.

• An anonymized list of ALSs for 2016-2022, including gender, age, postsecondary school, year of commission, year of subtraction, and place of work.

Figure 7: Tenuous relationship between Alberta population and number of ALSs (1996-2022).

The demand methodology relied on macro-economic modelling and municipal insights:

• Forecasts and empirical models from the governments of Alberta and Canada, primarily through the Census, Statistics Canada, and other bodies.

• Interviews of nine Alberta municipalities and a review of their land use planning forecasts, to get a sense of municipal development.

The supply/diversity/distribution analysis relied on four sources:

• Interviewing 35 ALSs, teachers, administrators, and others; cited here by Interview Date. We posed 4-6 questions to each person.

• Canvassing ALSs using GoogleForms to ensure anonymity; cited here by Response to Question. We posed 35 questions; we received 50 responses.

• Studies from ALSA, Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA), Law Society of Alberta (LSA), other professional regulators.

• The wisdom of 25 surveyors from other jurisdictions––Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and New Zealand.25

Assumptions

First, we are cognizant of the short-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2022) when forecasting demand, and when assessing ALS retirements and post-secondary school enrollments. Real economic activity contracted by 8.0% in 2020, the greatest contraction ever, something that historical time-series analysis cannot capture.

Second, we recognize that the 50 responses to the GoogleForms questionnaire are not representative of ALSA members, given self-selection and survivorship bias.26 Nevertheless, we use the responses to corroborate findings gleaned from other sources. Moreover, the response rate of 12% was excellent compared to recent studies on diversity/inclusion within other professions:

• APEGA accepted a response rate of 3%.27

• The Federation of Law Societies of Canada accepted a response rate of 5%.28

• The Australian geospatial community accepted a response rate of 5%.29

Third, we assume that there is currently not a surplus of ALSs nor of Articling Pupils. Rather, either demand/supply are in equilibrium, or demand is subtly exceeding supply. The assumption is supported by the variety of jobs that are consistently advertised in the ALSA weekly notices, and by the respondents, 86% of whom believe that the ideal number of ALSs to serve Albertans is at/above the current number (Figure 8).

Figure 8: Responses to Question 30.

8: Responses to Question 30.

Demand analysis

Demand analysis

Methodology for analyzing demand

Methodology for analyzing demand

Demand analysis

Methodology for analyzing demand

Alberta’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has tracked closely with the number of ALSs since at least 1996 (Figure 9). This is intuitive; demand for surveying is a function economic activity, linked to the drivers of Alberta’s economy: energy investment, engineering construction, and residential and non-residential construction. Excepting 2008 downturn, Alberta’s economy steadily grew from 1996-2014. The number of ALSs mirrored this trend. With stagnant economic growth since 2015, demand for surveying has waned, and this is reflected in the declining numbers of ALSs. Thus, the means of predicting future demand is predicting economic activity. 9: Real GDP (Alberta) and number of ALSs (indexed to 1996).

Alberta’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has tracked closely with the number of ALSs since at least 1996 (Figure 9). This is intuitive; demand for surveying is a function of economic activity, linked to the drivers of Alberta’s economy: energy investment, engineering construction, and residential and non-residential construction. Excepting the 2008 downturn, Alberta’s economy steadily grew from 1996-2014. The number of ALSs mirrored this trend. With stagnant economic growth since 2015, demand for surveying has waned, and this is reflected in the declining numbers of ALSs. Thus, the best means of predicting future demand is predicting economic activity.

Alberta’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has tracked closely with the number of ALSs since at least 1996 (Figure 9). This is intuitive; demand for surveying is a function of economic activity, linked to the drivers of Alberta’s economy: energy investment, engineering construction, and residential and non-residential construction. Excepting the 2008 downturn, Alberta’s economy steadily grew from 1996-2014. The number of ALSs mirrored this trend. With stagnant economic growth since 2015, demand for surveying has waned, and this is reflected in the declining numbers of ALSs. Thus, the best means of predicting future demand is predicting economic activity.

Figure 9: Real GDP (Alberta) and number of ALSs (indexed to 1996).

To forecast GDP for the 2023-2026 period, we consulted private and publicsector forecasts,30 analyzed the expenditure components of GDP (consumer spending, Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF), investment, and net exports), and applied expert judgement. For the 2026-2033 period, we applied long-term

Figure 8: Responses to Question 30.

Figure 9: Real GDP (Alberta) and number of ALSs (indexed to 1996).

growth rates during similar prospective cyclical stages, focusing on population, employment, and long-term investment trends. Then, we broke down Alberta surveying activity into the three categories that align with GDP: residential, energy, and non-energy construction.

Population

Alberta’s population growth has long ebbed and flowed on Alberta’s overall economic tide. There is not much variation in natural increase, but international and interprovincial net migration are both responsive to Alberta’s economic climate. Interprovincial net migration was largely negative from 2015-2021 and international net migration ceased during the pandemic. These trends reversed course in 2022, spurring remarkable population growth. Following strong gains in the second quarter, Alberta added 58,203 residents in the third quarter (Q3) of 2022, posting the highest single quarter growth rate in over 40 years.

By 2026, Alberta’s population will grow by 324,000 (+7.2%). Much of this growth will be concentrated in Calgary (+8.3%) and Edmonton (8.2%), while Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, and Red Deer will also experience notable growth. In 2033, Alberta’s population is expected to reach 5.4 M (an increase of at least 860,000). Again, Edmonton and Calgary will drive the growth (with over 21% growth for each).31

Residential construction sector

We concorded residential surveying activity to the two ubiquitous economic indicators of housing starts32 and residential construction investment.33 These feed into the broader residential structures GFCF, a key component in expenditure-based GDP.34 Alberta’s housing starts are widely forecasted by private and public-sector institutions. As indicators, they are connected to the economic fundamentals of employment, earnings, and population growth, which are other indicators that are widely forecasted. This allowed for robust comparison when projecting housing starts, residential construction investment, and demand for ALSs involved in large and small municipal development.

Spurred on by low inventories, a solid resale market, and high in-migration, housing starts are going to remain very strong in the medium term. We expect starts to average over 35,000 for 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026. An aging housing stock will drive more infill development; this densification has been targeted in many of the municipal plans. Multi-unit starts should drive the trend, but singledetached starts will remain prevalent. After strong short-to-medium term growth, housing starts will likely ease off but remain around 33,000 per year,35 higher than any level between 2015 and 2020 (Figure 10).

Multi-unit starts should drive the trend, but single-detached starts will remain prevalent. After strong short-to-medium term growth, housing starts will likely ease off but remain around 33,000 per year,35 higher than any level between 2015 and 2020 (Figure 10).

Energy sector

For the energy sector, the primary indicators examined were prices (West Texas Intermediate – WTI, Western Canadian Select – WCS, Alberta Energy Company –AECO), and production of crude oil, crude bitumen, and natural gas. The production forecasts from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Canada Energy Regulator (CER), and the Province of Alberta provided a comprehensive snapshot of sector activity over the next 10 years. The breakdown by new, expansion, and existing projects allowed a forecast of demand for ALSs working on well sites and pipelines. Activity in this sector (as it relates to surveying) accounts for a portion of the GDP by expenditure category, GFCF in non-residential structures.

Crude oil production is expected to peak in 2025 at 520 thousand barrels per day (bpd),36 which is 19% higher than 2019, before gradually declining. Crude bitumen production is forecasted to grow throughout the 10-year period with overall bitumen production slated to peak in 2032.37 Relative to 2021, production is estimated to be up

For the energy sector, the primary indicators examined were prices (West Texas Intermediate––WTI, Western Canadian Select––WCS, Alberta Energy Company––AECO), and production of crude oil, crude bitumen, and natural gas. The production forecasts from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Canada Energy Regulator (CER), and the Province of Alberta provided a comprehensive snapshot of sector activity over the next 10 years. The breakdown by new, expansion, and existing projects allowed a forecast of demand for ALSs working on well sites and pipelines. Activity in this sector (as it relates to surveying) accounts for a portion of the GDP by expenditure category, GFCF in non-residential structures.

14% in 2026 to approximately 3.7 M bpd, and up 26% by 2031 to 4.1 M bpd. New projects and the expansion of existing projects, particularly for in-situ, will contribute to this increase in bitumen production (Figure 11).

Crude oil production is expected to peak in 2025 at 520 thousand barrels per day (bpd),36 which is 19% higher than 2019, before gradually declining. Crude bitumen production is forecasted to grow throughout the 10-year period with overall bitumen production slated to peak in 2032.37 Relative to 2021, production is estimated to be up 14% in 2026 to approximately 3.7 M bpd, and up 26% by 2031 to 4.1 M bpd. New projects and the expansion of existing projects, particularly for in-situ, will contribute to this increase in bitumen production

35 There are risks inherent to this housing starts forecast, which include supply chain issues and heightened input costs, elevated interest rates, stagnant wage growth, and employment shortages (e.g. current demand for framers).

36 “ST98.” 2022. Alberta Energy Regulator. May 30, 2022.

37 Government of Canada, Canada Energy Regulator. 2022. “CER – Welcome to Canada’s Energy Future 2021.”

Figure 10: Alberta housing starts to 2033.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

Forecast of ALS demand

Figure 11: Energy sector forecast to 2031 (AER).

Figure 11: Energy sector forecast to 2031 (AER).

Forecast of ALS demand

Forecast of ALS demand

Figure 11: Energy sector forecast to 2031 (AER).

Forecasted demand is expected to jump 23% to 496 ALSs in 2026. This reflects the strong growth in residential building construction, non-energy construction, and sustained activity in the energy sector. This demand surge is jarring when juxtaposed with the current number of ALSs, requiring a sharp uptick after 2022 (Figure 12). This sharp uptick is largely caused by the declining employment trend of 2015-2022.

Forecasted demand is expected to jump 23% to 496 ALSs in 2026. This reflects the strong growth in residential building construction, non-energy construction, and sustained activity in the energy sector. This demand surge is jarring when juxtaposed with the current number of ALSs, requiring a sharp uptick after 2022 (Figure 12). This sharp uptick is largely caused by the declining employment trend of 2015-2022.

Forecasted demand is expected to jump 23% to 496 ALSs in 2026. This reflects the strong growth in residential building construction, non-energy construction, and sustained activity in the energy sector. This demand surge is jarring when juxtaposed with the current number of ALSs, requiring a sharp uptick after 2022 (Figure 12). This sharp uptick is largely caused by the declining employment trend of 2015-2022.

Figure 12: Number of ALSs (1996-2022) and forecast of ALS demand (2023-2033).

19961998200020022004200620082010201220142016201820202022e2024f2026f2028f2030f2032f Actuals Demand forecast

Figure 12: Number of ALSs (1996-2022) and forecast of ALS demand (2023-2033).

Demand for ALSs will be sustained from 2026-2033 but at a more measured rate of change. Forecasted demand is expected to jump 43% to 575 ALSs in 2033. This reflects Alberta’s strong economic fundamentals and overall growth (Figure 13).

Figure 12: Number of ALSs (1996-2022) and forecast of ALS demand (2023-2033).

Demand for ALSs will be sustained from 2026-2033 but at a more measured rate of change. Forecasted demand is expected to jump 43% to 575 ALSs in 2033. This reflects Alberta’s strong economic fundamentals and overall growth (Figure 13).

Demand for ALSs will be sustained from 2026-2033 but at a more measured rate of change. Forecasted demand is expected to jump 43% to 575 ALSs in 2033. This reflects Alberta’s strong economic fundamentals and overall growth (Figure 13).

13: Forecast of ALS demand and real GDP to 2033 (indexed to 1996).

Technology will likely not impact ALS demand. Just as total stations became the norm in the 1980s and GPS became the norm in the 2000s, advances in technology will continue within surveying. It’s a mixed blessing – although drone scanning offers benefits, Chat GPT is rubbish. We posed 52 questions about Alberta water boundary principles and practices, and 41 answers were wrong, both factually and legally.38 ChatGPT invented the names and citations of 10 court decisions, and it invented six journal articles (including the author, title, journal, and date).39 Thus, we expect that technology advances will not cause labour productivity growth rates to deviate from the historical norm nor will they reduce demand for ALSs. The interviews concurred: “I can’t see any change in technology that had the impact of GPS” on survey field time.40

Technology will likely not impact ALS demand. Just as total stations became the norm in the 1980s and GPS became the norm in the 2000s, advances in technology will continue within surveying. It’s a mixed blessing––although drone scanning offers benefits, Chat GPT is rubbish. We posed 52 questions about Alberta water boundary principles and practices, and 41 answers were wrong, both factually and legally.38 ChatGPT invented the names and citations of 10 court decisions, and it invented six journal articles (including the author, title, journal, and date).39 Thus, we expect that technology advances will not cause labour productivity growth rates to deviate from the historical norm nor will they reduce demand for ALSs. The interviews concurred: “I can’t see any change in technology that had the impact of GPS” on survey field time.40

The effect of using coordinates (not monuments) as boundary evidence will have one significant effect. There will be less need to set monuments for new boundaries, shifting effort from field to office, but not affecting the demand for ALSs. Coordinates will have no effect on searching for thousands of existing monuments41 nor for other evidence (e.g. nothing changes for riparian boundaries), nor on assessing encroachments across boundaries (e.g. lasting improvements). The interviews agreed that coordinates will change little in terms of ALS demand to 2033, because “in today’s highly computerized and digital world, the industry is using coordinates all the time in survey operations.”42 Our forecasts were corroborated through the interviews and responses. One ALS observed that “the demand for services is increasing as energy prices recover.”43 Another ALS noted that any reduction in demand from the resource extraction sector by

38 This is known as “hallucinating” in the ChatGPT world.

39 “There’s something scary about stupidity made coherent.” Stoppard. The Real Thing 2014.

40 Interview. October 10, 2022.

The effect of using coordinates (not monuments) as boundary evidence will have one significant effect. There will be less need to set monuments for new boundaries, shifting effort from field to office, but not affecting the demand for ALSs. Coordinates will have no effect on searching for thousands of existing monuments41 nor for other evidence (e.g. nothing changes for riparian boundaries), nor on assessing encroachments across boundaries (e.g. lasting improvements). The interviews agreed that coordinates will change little in terms of ALS demand to 2033, because “in today’s highly computerized and digital world, the industry is using coordinates all the time in survey operations.”42

41 Some of which date to the DLS township system of the 1870s.

42 Interview. December 16, 2022.

43 Response 17 to Question 35.

Our forecasts were corroborated through the interviews and responses. One ALS observed that “the demand for services is increasing as energy prices recover.”43 Another ALS noted that any reduction in demand from the resource extraction sector by 2033 will be offset by increased demand from alternative energy resources. The effect will be to “change the type of work that surveyors are completing,” from large projects with many crews to multiple smaller projects with only a few crews per ALS.44

Figure 13: Forecast of ALS demand and real GDP to 2033 (indexed to 1996).

Real GDP ALS, actuals ALS

Figure

Supply analysis

2033 will be offset by increased demand from alternative energy resources. The effect will be to “change the type of work that surveyors are completing,” from large projects with many crews to multiple smaller projects with only a few crews per ALS.44

Supply

analysis

Methodology for analyzing supply

Methodology for analyzing supply

Using ALSA retirement data from 1996, and the ages of ALSs from 20162022, we forecast retirements based on the current age profile. The number of people retiring should come down from its current elevated levels. Since 1996, 304 ALSs have retired, for a median of eight retirements/year. Thus, we forecast that eight ALSs will retire annually after 2026 (Figure 14). Also, there is the potential for some people to return to ALSA, if their departures were influenced by the pandemic.

Using ALSA retirement data from 1996, and the ages of ALSs from 2016-2022, we forecast retirements based on the current age profile. The number of people retiring should come down from its current elevated levels. Since 1996, 304 ALSs have retired, for a median of eight retirements/year. Thus, we forecast that eight ALSs will retire annually after 2026 (Figure 14). Also, there is the potential for some people to return to ALSA, if their departures were influenced by the pandemic.

The supply of ALSs is a function of Articling Pupils being commissioned as ALSs, migration from overseas, inter-provincial mobility, reinstatements, and retirements. We bifurcate the supply analysis into two phases: 2023-2027 and 2028-2033, because ALSA’s recruitment strategies are limited in the short-term given the lengthy education and articling process. Thus, our two supply forecasts to 2027 are conservative; they rely on the inventory of 41 Articling Pupils and the average articling time of five years.

After 2027, both supply forecasts are more optimistic (i.e. less conservative), but our positive supply forecast diverges from our neutral supply forecast. Our Recommendations will start to bear fruit after 2027 for the positive supply forecast.

The supply of ALSs is a function of Articling Pupils being commissioned as ALSs, migration from overseas, inter-provincial mobility, reinstatements, and retirements. We bifurcate the supply analysis into two phases: 2023-2027 and 2028-2033, because ALSA’s recruitment strategies are limited in the short-term given the lengthy education and articling process. Thus, our two supply forecasts to 2027 are conservative; they rely on the inventory of 41 Articling Pupils and the average articling time of five years.

After 2027, both supply forecasts are more optimistic (i.e. less conservative), but our positive supply forecast diverges from our neutral supply forecast. Our Recommendations will start to bear fruit after 2027 for the positive supply forecast.

Interview. October 11, 2022.

Figure 14: Forecast of ALS retirements to 2033.

Figure 14: Forecast of ALS retirements to 2033.

Neutral supply forecast

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

The neutral forecast is based on ALSA doing-nothing (by relying on existing inventory and historic trends, and by rejecting the Recommendations). It assumes: Existing inventory to 2027:

• 38 Articling Pupils are commissioned as ALSs.45

The neutral forecast is based on ALSA doing-nothing (by relying on existing inventory and historic trends, and by rejecting the Recommendations). It assumes:

• Two ALSs/year come from outside the articling process (i.e. inter-provincial mobility and reinstatement) based on historic rates. By 2027, there are: 48 new ALSs, a net loss of four ALSs, and 398 ALSs in toto.

- Existing inventory to 2027:

o 38 Articling Pupils are commissioned as ALSs.45

After 2027, we forecast that:

• Retirements level off to historic rates = 8/year.

o Two ALSs/year come from outside the articling process (i.e. interprovincial mobility and reinstatement) based on historic rates.

- By 2027, there are: 48 new ALSs, a net loss of four ALSs, and 398 ALSs in toto.

• Newly commissioned ALSs rebound to historic rates = 22/year.46

- After 2027, we forecast that:

• Two ALSs/year come from inter-provincial mobility and reinstatement. By 2033, there are: 132 new ALSs, a net loss of 78 ALSs, and 482 ALSs in toto.

o Retirements level off to historic rates = 8/year.

o Newly commissioned ALSs rebound to historic rates = 22/year.46

o Two ALSs/year come from inter-provincial mobility and reinstatement.

The greatest risk of neutrality is that ALSA suffers a cumulative imbalance of 101 ALSs by 2026 and 93 ALSs by 2033 (Figure 15), meaning that it will not be regulating in the public interest. Interviews elaborated on the risks:

- By 2033, there are: 132 new ALSs, a net loss of 78 ALSs, and 482 ALSs in toto.

The greatest risk of neutrality is that ALSA suffers a cumulative imbalance of 101 ALSs by 2026 and 93 ALSs by 2033 (Figure 15), meaning that it will not be regulating in the public interest. Interviews elaborated on the risks:

• There are not “enough ALSs … with enough experience to do the job well.”47

- There are not “enough ALSs … with enough experience to do the job well.”47

- “Will letting market forces thin out the herd end up in an overall death spiral?”48

• “Will letting market forces thin out the herd end up in an overall death spiral?”48

15: Neutral supply of ALSs; cumulative imbalance = 93 ALSs by 2033.

Figure 15: Neutral supply of ALSs; cumulative imbalance = 93 ALSs by 2033.

Positive supply forecast

The Recommendations eliminate the cumulative imbalance by 2033, assuming:

Positive supply forecast

- Existing inventory to 2027:

o 38 Articling Pupils are commissioned as ALSs by 2027.

The Recommendations eliminate the cumulative imbalance by 2033, assuming: Existing inventory to 2027: 38 Articling Pupils are commissioned as ALSs by 2027.

45 Historically, 22% of Articled Pupils have not been commissioned as ALSs.

46 Given the average number of newly commissioned ALSs/year from 2009 to 2019.

• Six ALSs/year come from outside the articling process, four from interprovincial mobility and two from reinstatement.

47 Interview. October 11, 2022 48 Interview. October 17, 2022.

Figure

By 2027, there are: 68 new ALSs, a net gain of 14 ALSs, and 418 ALSs in toto.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

After 2027, we forecast that:

• Retirements level off to historic rates = 8/year.

o Six ALSs/year come from outside the articling process, four from interprovincial mobility and two from reinstatement.

- By 2027, there are: 68 new ALSs, a net gain of 14 ALSs, and 418 ALSs in toto.

- After 2027, we forecast that:

o Retirements level off to historic rates = 8/year.

• Newly commissioned ALSs = 34/year, which is within the realm of the possible49 owing to ALS strategies: Recruiting at junior/senior high schools, liaising with post-secondary schools, welcoming FTLS, reducing articling leakage to 10%.

• Six ALSs/year come from inter-provincial mobility and from reinstatement. By 2033, there are: 270 new ALSs, a net gain of 168 ALSs and 572 ALSs in toto.

o Newly commissioned ALSs = 34/year, which is within the realm of the possible49 owing to ALS strategies: Recruiting at junior/senior high schools, liaising with post-secondary schools, welcoming FTLS, reducing articling leakage to 10%.

o Six ALSs/year come from inter-provincial mobility and from reinstatement.

The positive forecast has the benefit of reducing the cumulative imbalance to 0 by 2033,50 meaning that ALSA will continue to regulate in the public interest (Figure 16).

- By 2033, there are: 270 new ALSs, a net gain of 168 ALSs and 572 ALSs in toto.

The positive forecast has the benefit of reducing the cumulative imbalance to 0 by 2033,50 meaning that ALSA will continue to regulate in the public interest (Figure 16).

16: Positive supply of ALSs; cumulative imbalance = 0 ALSs by 2033.

Conventional supply

Conventional supply

To elaborate on the positive supply forecast, we do not anticipate that post-secondary schools (focusing on UC and UNB, who supply almost 60% of all ALSs) will meet the demand for ALSs by 2033.51 UC and UNB each have the capacity to enroll 60 geomatics engineering students annually, for a total across the two schools of 120 new students each year. This means that the two schools might supply 34 ALSs annually after 2033, if ALSA marketing efforts succeed with junior/senior high school students and if the schools – particularly UC – are receptive.

Before 2033, UC and UNB are unlikely to enroll and thus graduate sufficient numbers of students, owing to time delays and competition. On average, it takes 12-years for a

49 In 2009, the ratio of 30 new/existing ALSs = 8.2% and in 2028, the ratio of 34 new/existing ALSs = 7.5%.

To elaborate on the positive supply forecast, we do not anticipate that postsecondary schools (focusing on UC and UNB, who supply almost 60% of all ALSs) will meet the demand for ALSs by 2033.51 UC and UNB each have the capacity to enroll 60 geomatics engineering students annually, for a total across the two schools of 120 new students each year. This means that the two schools might supply 34 ALSs annually after 2033, if ALSA marketing efforts succeed with junior/senior high school students and if the schools––particularly UC––are receptive.

50 Actually, to within three ALSs of the demand forecast of 575 ALSs (within 0.05%) which is in keeping with generally accepted economic forecasting principles (GAEFP).

51 BCIT supplies few ALSs, focuses on supplying graduates to British Columbia, and did not respond to our queries.

Before 2033, UC and UNB are unlikely to enroll and thus graduate sufficient numbers of students, owing to time delays and competition. On average, it takes 12-years for a Grade 9 student to be commissioned as an ALS, and nine years for a Grade 12 student to be commissioned as an ALS. Also, there is much

Figure 16: Positive supply of ALSs; cumulative imbalance = 0 ALSs by 2033.

Figure

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

competition for graduates. Other jurisdictions within Canada aggressively vie for UNB graduates. Other geomatics disciplines (e.g. positioning/navigation) vie for UC graduates.

Grade 9 student to be commissioned as an ALS, and nine years for a Grade 12 student to be commissioned as an ALS. Also, there is much competition for graduates. Other jurisdictions within Canada aggressively vie for UNB graduates. Other geomatics disciplines (e.g. positioning/navigation) vie for UC graduates.

We forecast that, from 2028 to 2033, 34 new ALSs will be supplied annually from six sources––with Canadian post-secondary schools supplying 53% of ALSA demand and foreign-trained land surveyors (FTLS) supplying 29% of ALSA demand (Figure 17):

We forecast that, from 2028 to 2033, 34 new ALSs will be supplied annually from six sources – with Canadian post-secondary schools supplying 53% of ALSA demand and foreign-trained land surveyors (FTLS) supplying 29% of ALSA demand (Figure 17):

• 10 from UC.

- 10 from UC.

• 4 from UNB.

- 4 from UNB.

- 4 from other post-secondary schools (NAIT, SAIT, BCIT, other).

• 4 from other post-secondary schools (NAIT, SAIT, BCIT, other).

- 4 from inter-provincial mobility.

• 4 from inter-provincial mobility.

- 2 from reinstatement.

• 2 from reinstatement.

- 10 from overseas, as FTLS.

• 10 from overseas, as FTLS.

Strategies

ALSA mandate

The following five strategies, for eliminating by 2033 the cumulative imbalance between demand and supply, are fully within ALSA’s mandate as a professional regulator. ALSA has a responsibility to ensure that there are a sufficient number of ALSs to meet public demand, that education is sufficient to provide a rigorous level of service to the public, and that ALSs represent the diversity of Alberta. Indeed, the Independent Regulatory Review of ALSA concluded that offering professional development programs and engaging in or sponsoring research “does not undermine the ALSA’s public protection mandate and may in fact enhance it.”52

18

Figure 17: The six sources of 34 ALSs/year after 2027.

Figure 17: The six sources of 34 ALSs/year after 2027.

certainly the consensus of respondents: 80% believe that ALSA must “actively surveying as an interesting, important, lucrative, respected profession” so as to ALSA demand by 2033. This does not mean marketing surveying services or products; it does mean marketing surveying as a career. The message to be amplified the strategies is: Become an ALS; it is a worthy career.

Strategy 1: Change the narrative

That is certainly the consensus of respondents: 80% believe that ALSA must “actively market surveying as an interesting, important, lucrative, respected profession” so as to meet ALSA demand by 2033. This does not mean marketing surveying services or products; it does mean marketing surveying as a career. The message to be amplified through the strategies is: Become an ALS; it is a worthy career.

ubiquitous surveying narrative combines two tropes: That surveyors are “good at enjoy the outdoors, and don’t mind solo work in nature” and that technology is “Hello, drones! Pardon me, UAVs/RPAs.”53 The irony is that few ALSs actually outside; 85% of respondents spend less than 1/3 of their time at the job site 18). Somewhat wistfully, one respondent wished that: “I would like to see many ALS members, with much more of a presence in the field.”54

Strategy 1: Change the narrative

The ubiquitous surveying narrative combines two tropes: That surveyors are “good at math, enjoy the outdoors, and don’t mind solo work in nature” and that technology is cool––“Hello, drones! Pardon me, UAVs/RPAs.”53 The irony is that few ALSs actually work outside; 85% of respondents spend less than 1/3 of their time at the job site (Figure 18). Somewhat wistfully, one respondent wished that: “I would like to see many more ALS members, with much more of a

Responses to Question 13.

Figure 18: Responses to Question 13. A common theme from the interviews and the responses was that this surveying narrative must change:

Independent regulatory review. p49. September 2020. Masikewich. Help wanted: Advocacy required. PSC Magazine v2-n2. pp7-10. Fall 2022. Response 14 to Question 35.

• “If the narrative stays the same,” that surveying is represented by a ScottishCanadian man standing behind a tripod on the 19th century frontier, then surveying will continue to struggle to attract young people.55 Such a narrative, while clear and iconic, is inaccurate in 2023, let alone in 2033 (Figure 19).56

• The virtues of choosing a career that involves working outside are oversold. Such a motif suggests toughness and a frontier mentality, turns off some people, and is belied by respondents.57

• Surveying is more than proficiency in mathematics and science; focusing on those skills tends to discount problem-solving, analyzing and communicating.58

• “Traditions and history are good, but also give the impression of land surveying being an Old Boys Club … Members need to recognize that

- Surveying is more than proficiency in mathematics and science; focusing on those skills tends to discount problem-solving, analyzing and communicating.58

- “Traditions and history are good, but also give the impression of land surveying being an Old Boys Club Members need to recognize that changes in society are coming fast (e.g. coordinates as monuments) and position themselves accordingly as experts.”59

changes in society are coming fast (e.g. coordinates as monuments) and position themselves accordingly as experts.”59

55 Interview. December 20, 2022.

56 To be fair, much of the content of the book is excellent – entertaining and inspiring.

57 Interview. December 17, 2022.

58 Interview. December 23, 2022.

59 Response 2 to Question 35.

20 and is belied by respondents.57

The narrative must position surveying “in a very different light”60––one of analyzing, solving problems, resolving disputes, confronting issues, and addressing societal needs.61 According to an interview: “The most valuable technical staff are the most versatile. The most desirable skills are not … focused on the technology alone, but rather on problem-solving and self-learning skills, built on fundamental knowledge.”62

Technology should only be extolled as a means to an end. And the end is a holistic view of “looking beyond being experts at measuring coordinates and to the broader role as part of the infrastructure development process.”63 This includes sustainable development, alternative energy production, climate change, land tenure reform, and so on. The new narrative also must target diversity, moving away from the common narrative of “the pale male fellow making an observation using a total station” to a narrative of “a professional providing a boundary opinion on the extent of ownership and how it protects the public, creates social harmony and drives economic development.”64

Changing the narrative is a necessary, but not a sufficient condition. The if-webuild-it-he-will-come tactic might be effective in conjuring a baseball player,65 but it is ineffective on its own in addressing the cumulative imbalance. The narrative must be supplemented by discrete actions, as captured by the remaining four Strategies.

Figure 11: An iconic, yet inaccurate narrative.

Figure 19: An iconic, yet inaccurate narrative.

Changing the narrative is a necessary, but not a sufficient condition. The if-we-build-ithe-will-come tactic might be effective in conjuring a baseball player,65 but it is ineffective on its own in addressing the cumulative imbalance. The narrative must be supplemented by discrete actions, as captured by the remaining four Strategies.

Strategy 2: Liaise with post-secondary schools

Strategy 2: Liaise with post-secondary schools

The relationship between ALSA and the post-secondary schools that offer surveying/geomatics engineering is critical to ensuring the viability of both. We focus in this Strategy on UC and UNB because they have supplied 55% of current ALSs (Figure 20). So, ALSA must “prioritize the … relationships with the educational institutions that provide the supply of new professionals” and those same schools must “prioritize … relationships with professional associations which can provide it with a look forward to the types of skills that graduates need.”66

The relationship between ALSA and the post-secondary schools that offer surveying/geomatics engineering is critical to ensuring the viability of both. We focus in this Strategy on UC and UNB because they have supplied 55% of current ALSs (Figure 20). So, ALSA must “prioritize the … relationships with the educational institutions that provide the supply of new professionals” and those same schools must “prioritize relationships with professional associations which can provide it with a look forward to the types of skills that graduates need.”66

Figure 20: Most ALSs have graduated from four post-secondary schools; annual ratios since 2016.

Figure 20: Most ALSs have graduated from four post-secondary schools; annual ratios since 2016.

60 Interview. December 20, 2022.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

61 As reflected in a recent article: Thompson. True lines. PSC Magazine v2-n2. P11. Fall 2022.

62 Interview. October 7, 2022.

63 Interview. January 5, 2023.

64 Interview. November 4, 2022.

65 Field of Dreams film. 1989.

66 Interview. January 5, 2023.

It is a two-way street. Reject the opinion that it is not the university’s role to market the surveying/geomatics engineering degree, that it is only ALSA’s role to market the university programme.67 Rather, mutual marketing is required, because “if we don’t increase the number of trained students coming from post secondary the system will crumble for lack of personnel.”68 Both UNB and UC recognize that recruiting students is critical; that the goal is bums-on-seats (Figure 21).

It is a two-way street. Reject the opinion that it is not the university’s role to market the surveying/geomatics engineering degree, that it is only ALSA’s role to market the university programme.67 Rather, mutual marketing is required, because “if we don’t increase the number of trained students coming from post secondary … the system will crumble for lack of personnel.”68 Both UNB and UC recognize that recruiting students is critical; that the goal is bums-on-seats (Figure 21).

Figure 21: Google counts of "bums on seats" per publication. The first use was in 1970; usage peaked in 2013.

UC had 193 geomatics engineering graduates in the past seven academic years (2016 to 2022), of whom 73 (38%) concentrated on cadastral surveying. UNB had 119 graduates in geomatics engineering in the past four academic years (since 2019-20), of whom 102 (86%) concentrated on cadastral surveying.69 By way of comparison:

University Mean no. of cadastral grads (annual) Proportion of total grads

UC

UC had 193 geomatics engineering graduates in the past seven academic years (2016 to 2022), of whom 73 (38%) concentrated on cadastral surveying. UNB had 119 graduates in geomatics engineering in the past four academic years (since 2019-20), of whom 102 (86%) concentrated on cadastral surveying.69 By way of comparison:

The short-term (to 2026) outlook is not rosy. UNB anticipates that student enrollment will decline in the next three years. The main source of students are colleges offering

Figure 21: Google counts of "bums on seats" per publication. The first use was in 1970; usage peaked in 2013.

The short-term (to 2026) outlook is not rosy. UNB anticipates that student enrollment will decline in the next three years. The main source of students are colleges offering two-year diplomas in geomatics engineering (e,g. NAIT, SAIT, College of Geographic Sciences and College of the North Atlantic), graduates from which are entering the workforce directly “due to the abundance of highpaying jobs.”70

UC now relies on sessional instructors to teach surveying (e.g. survey law, land use planning). Also, it anticipates continuing to struggle to entice first year engineering students into geomatics engineering in general, and into cadastral surveying in particular, for four reasons:

• The appeal of the four engineering minors that the Faculty introduced in 2020.

• The appeal of the software minor that the Department introduced in 2022.

• First year students have little exposure to surveying (Appendix 1).

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

• First year students are “guaranteed placement in their first choice of program.”71

The outlook to 2033 is rosier if both schools grasp the nettle. UNB promises to introduce variety into its curriculum, and to offer hybrid learning platforms. UC promises to offer a cadastral minor (to compete with the other minors now available), to redouble its recruitment efforts, and to work with the Dean to hire a surveying professor. An interview suggested that a post-graduate diploma in “cadastral law makes the most sense,” to better prepare Articling Pupils.72

- First year students are “guaranteed placement in their first choice of program.”71

The outlook to 2033 is rosier if both schools grasp the nettle. UNB promises to introduce variety into its curriculum, and to offer hybrid learning platforms. UC promises to offer a cadastral minor (to compete with the other minors now available), to redouble its recruitment efforts, and to work with the Dean to hire a surveying professor. An interview suggested that a post-graduate diploma in “cadastral law makes the most sense,” to better prepare Articling Pupils.72

It was moved at the 2022 ALSA AGM that “ALSA should consider fully sponsoring the U of C cadastral chair for the next 10 years.”73 This is not one of our Strategies, and it is not one of our Recommendations. The numbers of UC geomatics engineering graduates and cadastral concentration graduates have varied widely since 2012, trends that have been immune to Chair funding (Figure 22).

It was moved at the 2022 ALSA AGM that “ALSA should consider fully sponsoring the U of C cadastral chair for the next 10 years.”73 This is not one of our Strategies, and it is not one of our Recommendations. The numbers of UC geomatics engineering graduates and cadastral concentration graduates have varied widely since 2012, trends that have been immune to Chair funding (Figure 22).

Total grads Cadastral grads

22: Wide variance in UC graduate numbers since 2012.

Funding a Chair’s salary does not survive a cost-benefit analysis, where the benefit is future ALSs. Only 39% of respondents are in favour of financially supporting schools to meet the demand for ALSs (Figure 23). Moreover, the experiences with post-secondary schools in Ontario (University of Toronto, York University, Toronto Metropolitan University and Sir Sandford Fleming College) are that salary funding is not linked to

Figure 22: Wide variance in UC graduate numbers since 2012.

Figure

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

Funding a Chair’s salary does not survive a cost-benefit analysis, where the benefit is future ALSs. Only 39% of respondents are in favour of financially supporting schools to meet the demand for ALSs (Figure 23). Moreover, the experiences with post-secondary schools in Ontario (University of Toronto, York University, Toronto Metropolitan University and Sir Sandford Fleming College) are that salary funding is not linked to robust student enrollment. The recent AOLS offer to help fund the York programme was rebuffed owing to low student numbers, and the current AOLS offer to fund part of the Fleming programme can only be justified by student enrollment.

Figure 23: Responses to Question 34.

Figure 23: Responses to Question 34.

Strategy 3: Engage with junior/senior high school students

Figure 23: Responses to Question 34.

Strategy 3: Engage with junior/senior high school students

Strategy 3: Engage with junior/senior high school students

As a means for recruiting people into surveying, 32% of the cross-Canada respondents believed that raising public awareness of surveying must focus on junior/senior high school students, and 26% of the cross-Canada respondents decided to become surveyors while in high school.74 This school influence was higher in Alberta. A school/vocational counsellor was the single largest influence on respondents becoming ALSs; 37% were exposed to surveying as a career by a counsellor (Figure 24).

As a means for recruiting people into surveying, 32% of the cross-Canada respondents believed that raising public awareness of surveying must focus on junior/senior high school students, and 26% of the cross-Canada respondents decided to become surveyors while in high school.74 This school influence was higher in Alberta. A school/vocational counsellor was the single largest influence on respondents becoming ALSs; 37% were exposed to surveying as a career by a counsellor (Figure 24).

As a means for recruiting people into surveying, 32% of the cross-Canada respondents believed that raising public awareness of surveying must focus on junior/senior high school students, and 26% of the cross-Canada respondents decided to become surveyors while in high school.74 This school influence was higher in Alberta. A school/vocational counsellor was the single largest influence on respondents becoming ALSs; 37% were exposed to surveying as a career by a counsellor (Figure 24).

Figure 24: Responses to Question 3.

Figure 24: Responses to Question 3.

74 AOLS. New member and articling student survey January 2023.

Engaging with junior/senior high school students was widely supported:

74 AOLS. New member and articling student survey. January 2023.

Engaging with junior/senior high school students was widely supported:

• “ALSA must get out there and explain to would-be surveyors what we do––why not visit the High Schools?”75

• “Our focus on universities/colleges comes too late … We would recruit far more young people to our profession if they were only made aware that we exist.”76

In Edmonton and Calgary, there are 225 schools that offer Grade 9, and 76 schools that offer Grade 12, in the public and separate school authorities. This is an enormous audience that is keen to hear about surveying as a career; it is also an audience that is refreshed annually. There are 68 more public, separate and charter school authorities across the province, most of which offer Grade 9 and Grade 12. Thus, we suspect that there are another 300 schools offering Grade 9 or 12, for a total of 600 schools.

The actions for implementing this strategy are set out in the Recommendations. Suffice to say that engaging with junior/senior high school students is best left to an ALSA career practitioner, to whom the students can relate. ALSs should not be visiting schools to entice students into surveying, for a couple of reasons. First, ALSs are not trained as presenters nor advocates for surveying as a career; they have other skills. Second, this is a critical strategy that cannot be left to volunteers.

Strategy 4: Welcome Foreign-Trained Land Surveyors (FTLSs)

By 2046, the Alberta population is forecast to be 6.4 M. We realize that this window is greater than the 10-years to 2033, yet it is instructive. The 2022-2046 population will increase by some 1.8 M, over half of which (55%) will come from international migration. This means that some 1 M new Albertans will have been born outside Alberta; Alberta will “become increasingly diverse.”77

There is “a whole world of people with credentials,”78 that has been little tapped by ALSA. Only 4% of ALSs were trained overseas. Within this ratio, however, there is a trend, because 80% of the FTLS became ALSs since 2009. This must trend upwards. The 1M new Albertans can contain many FTLS if ALSA is aggressive, given the experience with Ontario (28% of recent OLSs started as FTLS).

Immigration to Alberta is facilitated by the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP) through the Express Entry Stream (EES). The EES favours immigrants under NAICS Code 5413, which captures architecture, engineering, and related services. Surveying and mapping––which includes land surveying services––falls within NAICS Code 5413 as Code 541370. This is good news for FTLS. However, the EES also has an Accelerated Technical Pathway (ATP) that favours immigrants captured by 38 National Occupational Classification (NOC) Codes. The Codes assess the level of training, formal education and experience required by a profession, and the responsibilities of such a professional. Land surveying is now NOC 21203, and this is not one of the 38 favoured codes under

the ATP. If Alberta can be persuaded to include NOC 21203 within the ATP, then it will be easier to attract FTLS.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

not one of the 38 favoured codes under the ATP. If Alberta can be persuaded to include NOC 21203 within the ATP, then it will be easier to attract FTLS.

This strategy is in keeping with the ALSA’s efforts to exempt FTLS from articling, ensuring that qualified individuals entering regulated professions do not face unfair processes or barriers. It is also in keeping with the efforts of the Canadian Board of Examiners for Professional Surveyors (CBEPS), which has a review process to evaluate the education and credentials of FTLSs. CBEPS has processed 33 applications from FTLS, 13 of whom have been assigned a learning plan to meet the Canadian requirements, and five of whom have received Certificates of Completion.79 The strategy of aggressively welcoming FTLS to Alberta simply carries ALSA’s efforts and CBEPS’ processes to the next level.

This strategy is in keeping with the ALSA’s efforts to exempt FTLS from articling, ensuring that qualified individuals entering regulated professions do not face unfair processes or barriers. It is also in keeping with the efforts of the Canadian Board of Examiners for Professional Surveyors (CBEPS), which has a review process to evaluate the education and credentials of FTLSs. CBEPS has processed 33 applications from FTLS, 13 of whom have been assigned a learning plan to meet the Canadian requirements, and five of whom have received Certificates of Completion.79 The strategy of aggressively welcoming FTLS to Alberta simply carries ALSA’s efforts and CBEPS’ processes to the next level.

Strategy 5: Plug the leaky articling pipeline

Strategy 5: Plug the leaky articling pipeline

Since 1996, 522 people entered articles through ALSA, 116 of whom did not complete articles, because they were laid off, left Alberta, or left the surveying profession (Figure 25).80 This leakage rate of 22% is too high on the face of it, and is significantly higher than rates in other jurisdictions where “they generally all get through, given enough time.”81 In 2021 alone, more Articling Pupils (seven) had their articles terminated than were commissioned as ALSs (six).82

Since 1996, 522 people entered articles through ALSA, 116 of whom did not complete articles, because they were laid off, left Alberta, or left the surveying profession (Figure 25).80 This leakage rate of 22% is too high on the face of it, and is significantly higher than rates in other jurisdictions where “they generally all get through, given enough time.”81 In 2021 alone, more Articling Pupils (seven) had their articles terminated than were commissioned as ALSs (six).82

Figure 25: In many years, more Pupils were “subtracted” from Articles than were “added” as ALSs.

Reducing the leakage rate from 22% to 10% since 1996 would have meant that 64 Articling Pupils were retained, many of whom would now be ALSs. In addressing the cumulative imbalance to 2033, the articling process (despite recent laudable reforms) requires an overhaul. First, the examinations are unreasonable, given the excessive failure rates. After all, Articling Pupils who write such exams are university graduates

79 CBEPS. Registrar. December 19, 2022.

80 ALSA. Executive Director. December 14, 2022.

81 Interview. November 5, 2022.

82 Registration Committee Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. pp42-43. 2022 AGM.

Reducing the leakage rate from 22% to 10% since 1996 would have meant that 64 Articling Pupils were retained, many of whom would now be ALSs. In addressing the cumulative imbalance to 2033, the articling process (despite recent laudable reforms) requires an overhaul. First, the examinations are unreasonable, given the excessive failure rates. After all, Articling Pupils who write such exams are university graduates from four-year programs (usually geomatics engineering) or their equivalent, with field and office experience. And yet:

• PPLS 1 exam (Spring 2021): Only six of 12 passed (50% failed).

• PPLS 2 exam (Autumn 2021): Only five of 12 passed (58% failed).83

Figure 25: In many years, more Pupils were “subtracted” from Articles than were “added” as ALSs.

- PPLS 1 exam (Spring 2021): Only six of 12 passed (50% failed).

- PPLS 2 exam (Autumn 2021): Only five of 12 passed (58% failed).83

• PPLS 1 exam (Spring 2022): Only two of 19 passed (89% failed).84

- PPLS 1 exam (Spring 2022): Only two of 19 passed (89% failed).84

Second, articling takes five years, on average.85 This is significantly longer than AOLS and ABCLS articling, which takes 2.5 years, on average. Those two factors––onerous examinations and long timeline––dissuade some Articling Pupils from continuing.

Second, articling takes five years, on average.85 This is significantly longer than AOLS and ABCLS articling, which takes 2.5 years, on average. Those two factors – onerous examinations and long timeline – dissuade some Articling Pupils from continuing.

Respondents were concerned that “too few articling students are progressing through the process.”86 Some 22% of respondents believe that the articling process is not suitable as-is (Figure 26).

Respondents were concerned that “too few articling students are progressing through the process.”86 Some 22% of respondents believe that the articling process is not suitable as-is (Figure 26).

Various concerns and suggestions were proffered:

Various concerns and suggestions were proffered:

- “I am aware of situations where these [examination failure] numbers have convinced individuals to pursue other career opportunities.”87

• “I am aware of situations where these [examination failure] numbers have convinced individuals to pursue other career opportunities.”87

- Hire an “expert in pedagogy” to offer official support services (study sessions and guides) to Articling Pupils.88

• Hire an “expert in pedagogy” to offer official support services (study sessions and guides) to Articling Pupils.88

- Provide Articling Students with ongoing instruction from experienced ALSs (other than their Principals) and from other boundary experts.89

83 Registration Committee Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. pp42-43. 2022 AGM.

84 ALS News p7. June-August 2022.

85 Registrar’s Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. p49. 2022 AGM.

86 Response 1 to Question 20.

87 Response 2 to Question 20.

88 Responses 6 & 8 to Question 20.

89 Response 9 to Question 20.

• Provide Articling Students with ongoing instruction from experienced ALSs (other than their Principals) and from other boundary experts.89 This strategy of reforming the articling process is the culmination of Strategies 1-4. That is, if ALSA works diligently to get more people into post-secondary schools (from junior/senior high schools) and then into articles (from postsecondary schools and as FTLSs), then ALSA must ensure that the articling process loses fewer Articling Pupils. We are not suggesting that all Articling Pupils be retained; we are suggesting that the leakage rate be reduced to 10%.

Diversity and inclusion

Opportunity & influence

Diversity and inclusion are part of the ALSA 2022-23 Strategic Plan, which sets out that ALSA has the “opportunity and influence to implement change … to promote and support fair, respectful, inclusive, and culturally safe workplaces,

Figure 26: Responses to Question 19.

Figure 26: Responses to Question 19.

regulatory functions, and profession.” A diverse workforce is in the public interest. It ensures that ALSs represent Albertans, that the client-ALS dynamic is respectful, and that all Albertans are welcome within the profession. Thus, “diversity, inclusion and equality represent issues needing to be addressed, but also opportunities looking to be realized.”90

A 2022 study on inclusion in the space, spatial and surveying industries in New Zealand and Australia found that inclusive firms thrive: “Employees in inclusive teams, with inclusive managers, and in inclusive organisational cultures [are] significantly more satisfied, secure, successful, and higher performing.”91 The differences between an inclusive workplace and a workplace rife with microaggressions is stark. A surveyor in an inclusive workplace is eight times more likely to remain with the firm/profession and seven times more likely to be very satisfied with her/his/their job.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

ALSA diversity––across the four themes of gender, BIPOC, sexual orientation and disability––is difficult to quantify. There is little data on three of the themes, because diversity analysis is dependent on self-reporting. Nevertheless, there is sufficient data gathered from interviews, responses and ALSA databases to assess gender diversity, to make tentative findings about BIPOC diversity, and to reveal issues with inclusion.

Only 14% of respondents believe that ALSs are diverse (Figure 27).

Sadly, some interviews and responses dismissed or marginalized diversity/inclusion:

Sadly, some interviews and responses dismissed or marginalized diversity/ inclusion:

- “What does this have to do with education?” 92

• “What does this have to do with education?”92

- “We look for the best candidates regardless of how they identify; everyone is treated equally and fairly.”93

• “We look for the best candidates regardless of how they identify; everyone is treated equally and fairly.”93

- We “hire the best people for the job and have little to no consideration of religion, gender or race.”94

• We “hire the best people for the job and have little to no consideration of religion, gender or race.”94

- “The profession is open to all – simply meet the requirements of the Registration Committee and you’re a commissioned land surveyor.”95

• “The profession is open to all––simply meet the requirements of the Registration Committee and you’re a commissioned land surveyor.”95

Diversity: Gender

Although “diversity is a wider issue than the struggle for gender equity,”96 gender is the most obvious inequity within ALSA. Only 8% of ALSs are female. This ratio is echoed in other jurisdictions and professions: 5% of SLSs are women, 7% of OLSs are women,

Figure 27: Responses to Question 23.

Figure 27: Responses to Question 23.

Diversity: Gender

Although “diversity is a wider issue than the struggle for gender equity,”96 gender is the most obvious inequity within ALSA. Only 8% of ALSs are female. This ratio is echoed in other jurisdictions and professions: 5% of SLSs are women, 7% of OLSs are women, 9% of BCLSs are women (Appendix 5), and 14% of Alberta engineers are women.97

The data from post-secondary schools is slightly encouraging. NAIT reports that, over the past nine academic years, 21% of the applicants to Geomatics Engineering have been women. UNB reports that 15% of its students in the cadastral option are women.98 UC reports that, over the past eight academic years, 35% of cadastral survey graduates have been women.

These ratios must be critiqued thrice. First, the ratios obscure the fact that the absolute numbers are low. For instance, the 35% ratio for UC means that three women graduate annually, on average. Second, the ratios are silent as to the experiences of women, and the extent to which those experiences discourage them from pursuing surveying. For instance, UNB is not optimistic about improving the ratio of women students, because “a significant number of female students who begin with an interest in cadastral surveying … have later had toxic summer work experiences in this field and turned away from it.”99 Third, there is a leaky pipeline from high school (where girls comprise 50% of the science students), through university, and then through the articling process (where women comprise 8% of ALSs).

There is much work to be done in attaining gender diversity within ALSA by 2033. If the trend continues, then the 0.7% increase in female ALSs from 2016 to 2022 ensures that 30% of ALSs will be women within 130 years––by 2152.100 This gender inequity is exacerbated when recent ALS retirements are analyzed. Since 2016, the average retirement age for all ALSs is 60––who was an ALS for 24 years, on average. As a sub-set of that, seven female ALSs retired since 2016, with an average age of only 44––who was an ALS for only 14 years, on average.

Diversity: Other

By 2033, ALSA might well be more diverse in terms of BIPOC,101 given the diversity of students in post-secondary schools and ALSA engagement with junior/senior high school students. That is, students tend to represent the cultural and ethnic diversity of Alberta and of Canada. UNB estimates that 20% of its graduates are BIPOC, and “anticipates an increase in diversity over time,” not least because “a longer-term Indigenous recruitment plan is being discussed.”102 NAIT says that, over the past nine academic years, 4% of its graduates have been Indigenous.103 Finally, UC and SAIT claim that their students are increasingly BIPOC, because both student bodies reflect the increasing diversity of Calgary.104

In addition, Alberta promises to be more diverse by 2026 and 2033. Between 2023 and 2033, the Alberta population will grow by about 1 M people, of whom 0.7 M will be BIPOC.105 To the extent that ALSA can interest any young Albertan to become an ALS, then members promise to be more diverse simply based on demographics:

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

Inclusion

Inclusion

Inclusion within ALSA is thwarted by micro-aggressions, defined as insults, sarcasm, intimidation, criticism, and teasing. Some 18% of ALS respondents have suffered subtle micro-aggressions (Figure 28).

Inclusion within ALSA is thwarted by micro-aggressions, defined as insults, sarcasm, intimidation, criticism, and teasing. Some 18% of ALS respondents have suffered subtle micro-aggressions (Figure 28).

These micro-aggressions take many forms:

These micro-aggressions take many forms:

• During International Women’s Day,106 a male colleague complained; “why don’t we have an International Men’s Day?”107

- During International Women’s Day,106 a male colleague complained; “why don’t we have an International Men’s Day?”107

- “I was not supported, and I felt very alone …I protested about the Playboy calendars on the wall but that didn’t change anything; just made me feel like I was the annoying feminist.”108

• “I was not supported, and I felt very alone …I protested about the Playboy calendars on the wall but that didn’t change anything; just made me feel like I was the annoying feminist.”108

- After mistreating an Indigenous medicine pouch: “Sorry, not sorry.”109

• After mistreating an Indigenous medicine pouch: “Sorry, not sorry.”109

- “There was one company where co-op students were started as assistants on survey crews and the surveyors would have an annual competition to see who could have sex with them first.”110

• “There was one company where co-op students were started as assistants on survey crews and the surveyors would have an annual competition to see who could have sex with them first.”110

Inclusion is an issue in three settings – workplace/office, job site and ALSA meetings:

Inclusion is an issue in three settings––workplace/office, job site and ALSA meetings:

• “Elections and ALSA business need to be transparent, inclusive, and open. Offside jokes and attitudes at AGMs need to be controlled and eliminated.”111

- “Elections and ALSA business need to be transparent, inclusive, and open. Offside jokes and attitudes at AGMs need to be controlled and eliminated.”111

- “At this year’s AGM, where diversity and inclusion were the focus of our professional development, a senior member … told an extremely inappropriate joke at the microphone to ‘lighten the mood.’ He was not stopped. No one addressed how improper the joke was. It was just boys being boys.”112

Figure 28: Responses to Question 26.

Figure 28: Responses to Question 26.

• “At this year’s AGM, where diversity and inclusion were the focus of our professional development, a senior member … told an extremely inappropriate joke at the microphone to ‘lighten the mood.’ He was not stopped. No one addressed how improper the joke was. It was just boys being boys.”112

• “Some cultures don’t respect women … When in the field, people would approach my rodman as he was male, and people felt that meant he was in charge … He was just hauling around the shovel.”113

• “The professional community is welcoming; industry can sometimes not be.”114

The responses were revealing, not least because a much larger ratio of women responded––14.2% of respondents were women, whereas only 7.9% of ALSs are women. Put another way, 24% of all female ALSs responded, whereas only 11% of all male ALSs responded. There were three statistically significant relationships between gender, job satisfaction and negative experiences:115

• 29% of female respondents do not find their workplaces to be imbued with civility and empathy (as compared to only 2% of male respondents).

• 86% of female respondents have had negative experiences because of their gender (as compared to only 7% of male respondents).

• 100% of respondents who are very dissatisfied/ambivalent with their ALS careers find their workplaces to be uncivil and lacking in empathy.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that ALSs are “predominantly white and male with limited diversity in gender and race.”116 The onus is on those very ALSs to make the culture more inclusive: “If we want to see a change, senior members need to start speaking up when they witness inappropriate behaviour.”117 The Recommendations will result in a twofer: ALSs become more diverse (as workplaces become more inclusive), and the ALS cumulative imbalance is reduced to zero.118

Recommendations

We presented the three answers to the study questions, the five strategies and 15 Recommendations for implementing the Strategies to ALSA Council in February 2023. Most of the recommendations (5 to 15) are merely tasks to be assigned to the two career practitioners hired pursuant to Recommendations 1 and 2:

1. That ALSA hire one career practitioner:119

• To market surveying120 as a viable career to Grade 9 and Grade 12 students and to first-year engineering students; and

• To liaise with post-secondary schools, with the appropriate government Ministry, and with the Canadian Board of Examiners for Professional Surveyors’ (CBEPS).

2. That ALSA hire a second career practitioner:

• To reform and oversee the articling process (orientation sessions, study guide, examinations, mentoring Articling Pupils, advising ALS principals); and

• To attract FTLS, by working with the appropriate government Ministries, CBEPS, and overseas post-secondary schools and surveying associations.

3. That ALSA work with the appropriate government Ministry to ensure that FTLS settle in Alberta, by revising the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program, whose:

• Express Entry Stream favours firms in NAICS Code 5413––architecture, engineering, and related services––which includes land surveying.

• Accelerated Tech Pathway does not favour NOC Code 21203––land surveying.

4. That ALSA draft a Handbook (20 pages) with 10 case studies and images, for use by guidance counsellors/career practitioners in Alberta junior/ senior high schools. Case studies will describe surveying as uber-cool by showing:121

• The variety of ALS work (e.g. subdivisions, boundary disputes, Crown lands, water bounds, surveying of lakes and rivers, well-sites/pipelines, RPRs, wetlands, transmission lines).

• That surveying addresses societal issues (e.g. sustainable development, Indigenous claims, Indigenous boundaries, affordable housing) using science and social science.

• That ALSA encourages girls in junior/senior high schools, and women in other professions/trades, to become ALSs.

5. That ALSA personally speak to every Grade 9 and Grade 12 class in Alberta every three years on the merits of becoming an ALS or a technician.

6. That ALSA enlighten all ALSs as to how to analyze biases, power, and privilege within firms, such that all ALSs can flourish.

7. That ALSA, in concert with ALSs, offer significant bursaries ($20,000+ each) to post-secondary students committed to becoming ALSs or technicians.

8. That ALSA fund bursaries and scholarships aimed at women, at the BIPOC and LGBTQ2S+ communities, and at those with mental or physical disabilities.

9. That ALSA have an AGM education session for post-secondary schools, to allow them to describe their application and enrollment numbers; the ratio of surveying students; and trends, forecasts, and issues.

10. That ALSA engage with first year engineering students at UC to persuade them of the merits of enrolling in the geomatics engineering cadastral concentration.

11. That ALSA work with UC to significantly revise their websites/homepages to display surveying as a worthy field of study and as an interesting career.

12. That ALSA work with CBEPS to ensure that the land surveying curriculum at UC, UNB, and other post-secondary schools meets the needs of Articling Pupils.

13. That ALSA work with the Minister of Advanced Education and UC Geomatics Engineering to get a surveying professor hired, universityfunded, because:

• UC has an obligation to ensure that an essential service is fully supported.

• Surveying is the single-largest employer of geomatics engineering graduates.

• There is significant demand for ALSs.

• Students interested in becoming Articling Pupils must be competently instructed.

• UC supports 14 professors/instructors in other areas of geomatics engineering.

• Land surveying has long languished in the funding shadows.

14. That ALSA fund focused research from UC and UNB, to the extent that it is:

• In the public interest by informing surveying in Alberta; and

• Co-supervised by ALSA.

15. That ALSA revise the articling/registration process such that:

• The average articling period is significantly less than five years.

• The pass rates are raised for the PPLS 1 & 2 examinations, using adultlearning principles that assess competency and that rely on problem-based learning.

• ALSA plays an active role in tutoring pupils.

• Articling Pupil Tutoring (APT) is married to Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as part of continuing competence of ALSs.

• The leakage rate is halved to 10%.

Annual General Meeting: April 2023

We presented our findings, strategies, and recommendations to the ALSA members at its 2023 AGM in Lake Louise. There was much discussion––before, during, and after the presentation. There was a consensus that the study was rigorous, but such a sentiment was not unanimous. One ALS was of the opinion that “market forces” were sufficient to ensure that ALS supply met demand and that diversity/inclusivity was achieved within ALSA, eliminating the need for any strategies, recommendations, and financial expenditures.122 Another ALS questioned: “What the final cost to ALSA was for the report and where the cost is shown in the financial statements.”123

There was a tendency for the discussion to focus on the articling process, to the exclusion of the other four Strategies and to the bulk of the Recommendations.124 In response to a question from an ALS about whether Articling Pupils were dropping out because they were unable to pass or for other reasons, we passed on five responses from the GoogleForms questionnaire:

• “More knowledge has to be passed along to students by supervising ALSs.”

• “Better commitment by ALSs to tutor and develop professionalism” is needed.

• There is “far too much discrepancy between Principals which is creating separation among Articling Pupils.”

• “Relying on a single Principal as the single source of knowledge and wisdom doesn’t prepare the Pupil well for a broad education.”

• “Articling students need more mentorship from their ALS and other colleagues.”

Two findings were focused on. One ALS noted that the University of Calgary has become less interested in cadastral surveying and found it an “insult” that there is no mention of ALSA, ALSs or land surveying on their three websites (Appendix 1).125 Another ALS reminded the membership that ALSA must create a welcoming environment and observed that at AGMs there are comments that make him “cringe.”126

After such discussion, ALS feedback was that the top three priorities were to:

• Hire one career practitioner to market surveying as a viable career.

• Hire a second career practitioner to reform and oversee the articling process.

• Work with the appropriate Ministry CBEPS to ensure that FTLS settle in Alberta by revising the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program.127

Given that these are the three most significant recommendations, we were pleased.

Concluding: To October 2023

In July 2023, ALSA circulated an RFP for “marketing/communications experts to develop and implement a plan to attract” more people into the surveying profession over the next 10 years. The proposals that were received were underwhelming. ALSA pivoted. Proposals were next requested from “business/carer consultants for market research to understand how people choose their careers and how ALSA can influence people in their choice.” The career consultant who was retained reported that:

• There were nine studies that outlined factors that influence career choices.

• “Not surprisingly, parents and friends are the biggest influences” in choosing a career.129

ALSA is now reviewing the career consultant’s research report. In the interim, Lethbridge College recently closed its surveying/geomatics programme (a fundamental source of many survey technicians and some ALSs) owing to low enrollment.130 Thus, the final word on the issues of supply and diversity go to an interview: “In some ways we’re fucked; in others, there is huge opportunity.”131

Notes

¹ brian_ballantyne@hotmail.com. Ceilidh was the economic/statistic guru; Brian merely cobbled the words together.

2 Paraphrasing the best opening line ever: “We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold.” Thompson. Fear and loathing in Las Vegas. 1971. The next best opening line: “The worst smell in the world is dead badger.” Herron. The secret hours. 2023.

3 Ballantyne. Demand for, supply of, and diversity among AlberTa Land Surveyors to 2023. Report to ALSA. 86pp.

February 5, 2023. We also looked into the distribution of ALSs, and the demand/supply/diversity of technicians.

4 Sue Hanham of Waimate focused on the lessons from New Zealand.

5 Statistics New Zealand. Table BLD117AA

6 CSLB. Annual Report 2020-21.

7 Statistics New Zealand. Tables DPE058AA and SNE004AA.

8 Although the five-year trend (2016-2021) shows an increase from 676 to 707 LCSs. CSLB Bulletins.

9 S+SNZ Stakeholder Workshop. November 2019.

10 Bill 23, s31(1)(i)).

11 Bill 23, s2(f)).

12 Premier Smith to Minister Madu. Mandate Letter. November 15, 2022.

13 Premier Smith to Minister Jones. Mande Letter. July 5, 2023.

14 Ministry of Skilled Trades and Professions. Annual Report 2022-2023. p36. June 2023.

15 BC Professional Governance Act, SBC 2018, c47.

16 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p17. April 2023.

17 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. pp 51 & 58. April 2023.

18 Dramatic foreshadowing; see the supply analysis.

19 We have such data for 385 of the 404 ALSs.

20 ALSA. Executive Director. December 14, 2022.

21 ALSA. Roll of members. January 1, 2022.

22 Six ALSs work exclusively in non-cadastral surveying, 14 ALSs work for government/NAIT/ ALSA, and 27 ALSs live/work outside Alberta.

23 Interview. January 4, 2023.

24 ALSA. Director of Practice Review. October 19, 2022.

25 Thirteen New Zealand surveyors were interviewed; they worked across all sectors.

26 Kahneman. Thinking, fast and slow. 2011. Thaler. Misbehaving: The making of behavioural economics. 2015.

27 APEGA. A shift in industry work culture. White Paper. p11. November 2021.

28 Federation of Law Societies of Canada. Study on the psychological health of legal professionals. October 2022.

29 Diversity Council Australia. Mapping the state of inclusion in the space/spatial/surveying industries. 2022.

30 The list of references used in the Demand Analysis has been expunged from this article but are available.

31 “Population Statistics.” www.alberta.ca.

32 Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0158-01 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, housing starts, all areas, Canada and provinces, seasonally adjusted at annual rates, monthly (x 1,000).

33 Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0175-01 Investment in Building Construction.

34 Statistics Canada. Table 36-10-0222-01 Gross domestic product, expenditure-based, provincial and territorial, annual (x 1,000,000).

35 There are risks inherent to this housing starts forecast, which include supply chain issues and heightened input costs, elevated interest rates, stagnant wage growth, and employment shortages (e.g. current demand for framers).

36 “ST98.” 2022. Alberta Energy Regulator. May 30, 2022.

37 Government of Canada, Canada Energy Regulator. 2022. “CER––Welcome to Canada’s Energy Future 2021.”

38 This is known as “hallucinating” in the ChatGPT world.

39 “There’s something scary about stupidity made coherent.” Stoppard. The Real Thing. 2014.

40 Interview. October 10, 2022.

41 Some of which date to the DLS township system of the 1870s.

42 Interview. December 16, 2022.

43 Response 17 to Question 35.

44 Interview. October 11, 2022.

45 Historically, 22% of Articled Pupils have not been commissioned as ALSs.

46 Given the average number of newly commissioned ALSs/year from 2009 to 2019.

47 Interview. October 11, 2022

48 Interview. October 17, 2022.

49 In 2009, the ratio of 30 new/existing ALSs = 8.2% and in 2028, the ratio of 34 new/existing ALSs = 7.5%.

50 Actually, to within three ALSs of the demand forecast of 575 ALSs (within 0.05%) which is in keeping with generally accepted economic forecasting principles (GAEFP).

51 BCIT supplies few ALSs, focuses on supplying graduates to British Columbia, and did not respond to our queries.

52 ALSA. Independent regulatory review. p49. September 2020.

53 Masikewich. Help wanted: Advocacy required. PSC Magazine. v2-n2. pp7-10. Fall 2022.

54 Response 14 to Question 35.

55 Interview. December 20, 2022.

56 To be fair, much of the content of the book is excellent––entertaining and inspiring.

57 Interview. December 17, 2022.

58 Interview. December 23, 2022.

59 Response 2 to Question 35.

60 Interview. December 20, 2022.

61 As reflected in a recent article: Thompson. True lines. PSC Magazine. v2-n2. P11. Fall 2022.

62 Interview. October 7, 2022.

63 Interview. January 5, 2023.

64 Interview. November 4, 2022.

65 Field of Dreams film. 1989.

66 Interview. January 5, 2023.

67 New Zealand interview.

68 Response 1 to Question 35.

69 UNB also had 11 graduates over the same period in the three-year BGeom degree, with the cadastral option.

70 Interview. December 13, 2022.

71 Interview. January 4, 2023.

72 Interview. October 7, 2022.

73 ALSA. AGM Report. p6. April 21-23, 2022.

74 AOLS. New member and articling student survey. January 2023.

75 Interview. December 8, 2022.

76 Response 5 to Question 35.

77 Census Canada forecast as of October 1, 2022; released December 21, 2022 (GoA website).

78 Interview. December 20, 2022.

79 CBEPS. Registrar. December 19, 2022.

80 ALSA. Executive Director. December 14, 2022.

81 Interview. November 5, 2022.

82 Registration Committee Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. pp42-43. 2022 AGM.

83 Registration Committee Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. pp42-43. 2022 AGM.

84 ALS News. p7. June-August 2022.

85 Registrar’s Report. ALSA Reports and Recommendations. p49. 2022 AGM.

86 Response 1 to Question 20.

87 Response 2 to Question 20.

88 Responses 6 & 8 to Question 20.

89 Response 9 to Question 20.

90 Jackson. ALS News. p5. October 8, 2021.

91 Diversity Council Australia. Mapping the state of inclusion in the space/spatial/surveying industries. p5. 2022

92 Response 4 to Question 29.

93 Response 6 to Question 29.

94 Response 13 to Question 29.

95 Interview. December 8, 2022.

96 Diversity Works New Zealand. New Zealand workplace diversity survey. 2021.

97 APEGA. Women in the workplace. White Paper. November 2021.

98 Interview. January 12, 2023.

99 Interview. December 13, 2022.

100 32 of 404 ALSs were women in 2016; 24 of 333 ALSs were women in 2016.

101 Black, Indigenous or Person of Colour.

102 Interview. December 13, 2022.

103 Interview. January 12, 2023.

104 Interview. December 23, 2022.

105 Statistics Canada. Table 17-10-0146-01: Projected population by racialized group. September 8, 2022.

106 March 8, a global day to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.

107 Interview. November 28, 2022.

108 Interview. December 17, 2022.

109 Surveyor General Branch––Natural Resources Canada. May 2019.

110 APEGA. Women in the workplace. White Paper. p29. November 2021.

111 Response 2 to Question 35.

112 Response 14 to Question 29.

113 Response 2 to Question 29 (our emphasis).

114 Response 9 to Question 29.

115 Chi-squared analysis, at the 95% confidence interval.

116 ALSA. Equity, diversity, and inclusion: Current state assessment report. p13. October 2021.

117 Response 14 to Question 29.

118 Two benefits for the price of one: “I found him in his room, lying on the bed with his feet on the rail, smoking a toofah [cigarette sold at two/halfpenny].” Wodehouse. The great sermon handicap. Cosmopolitan. June 1922.

119 Ideally, the age/gender/ethnicity of the practitioner will resonate with the students and mesh with the strategies.

120 We use “surveying” to represent land surveying, cadastral surveying, or legal surveying.

121 We define “uber-cool” as a career that is interesting, lucrative, inclusive, and that serves the public interest.

122 The ALS was less forthcoming in describing such “forces.” ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p60. April 2023.

123 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p22. April 2023.

124 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. pp 31-33. April 2023.

125 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p49. April 2023.

126 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p50. April 2023.

127 ALSA. Report of Proceedings. p50. April 2023.

128 ALSA. Council Report. p3. August 24, 2023.

129 ALSA. Council Report. p3. October 19, 2023. Actually, this is somewhat surprising, given that our findings were that “a school/vocational counsellor was the single largest influence on respondents becoming ALSs; 37% were exposed to surveying as a career by a counsellor”: Figure 27 on p47.

130 This explains the absence of any reference to Lethbridge College in this article, as opposed to in our Final Report.

131 Interview. November 4, 2022.

132 https://schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics; https://schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics/about; https:// schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics/research/research-areas

References

ALSA. Independent regulatory review. September 2020. Author: Field Law.

ALSA. Equity, diversity, and inclusion current state assessment report. October 27, 2021. Author: Freestone Integrated Communications.

ALSA. Report and Recommendations. 2021-22.

ALSA. AGM––Report of Proceedings. April 2022.

ALSA. Audit of the ALSA assessment program. Summary. November 18, 2022. Author: Wickett Measurement Systems.

APEGA. Women in the workplace: A shift in industry work culture. November 2021.

APEGA. Annual Report. 2021.

AOLS. Need for surveyors ppt. February 28, 2018. Author: David Horwood.

AOLS. Surveyor hiring needs ppt. July 30, 2021.

AOLS. New member and articling student survey ppt. January 2023.

Baxter & Yoon. Mapping the new geography of access of justice in Canada. Osgoode Hall Law Journal V52––n1. Fall 2014.

Consulting Surveyors Australia. Determining the future demand, supply & skill gaps for surveying & geospatial professional: 2018-2028. 2019. Author: BIS Oxford Economics.

Diversity Council Australia. Mapping the state of inclusion in the space, spatial and surveying industries. Inclusion@Work index. 2022.

Diversity Works New Zealand. New Zealand workplace diversity survey 2021. Engineers Canada. 30 by 30 and beyond––Priority 3: Recruitment of women. 2018.

Federation of Law Societies of Canada. National study on the psychological health determinants of legal professionals in Canada. October 2022. Authors: Cadieux, et al. Law Society of Alberta. My Experience Project––40 submissions. 2020-2021. Law Society of Alberta. Regulatory objectives––Summary. December 5, 2019.

Submitted to New Zealand Surveyor – October 29, 2023

Minister of National Defence advisory panel on systemic racism and discrimination. Final Report. January 2022.

Appendix 1: Three UC websites devoid of “land surveying”132

Appendix 1: Three UC websites devoid of “land surveying”

132 https://schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics; https://schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics/about; https://schulich.ucalgary.ca/geomatics/research/research-areas

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