Urban Sprawl
Local Government Toolkit for Sustainable Food Production
Former Vancouver Mayor Recieves City's Highest Honour
On July 6th, former Vancouver Mayor, Art Phillips receievd the Freedom of the City Award. Under Mayor Phillips, the City of Vancouver adopted socially and environmentally progressive policies that laid out the foundation for what is today one of the most livable cities in the world.
Green Infrastructure Better for Stormwater Control
Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago have concluded that green infrastructure is better suited to deal with storm water runoff that the traditional use of curbs and gutters, detention ponds and storm sewers. Green infrastructure incorporates permeable pavement, green roofs and constructed wetlands to reduce the flow of pollutants into sewers and ultimately into rivers, streams, oceans and lakes.
Read more here.
A Tale of Three CIties
Recent study by the Neptis Foundation studies three very different trends in city planning and growth. The study examines Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary. Read Globe and Mail article here.
Planning a Post-Carbon World:The City of North Vancouver and the 100 Year Plan
The City of North Vancouver's 100 Year Sustainability Vision represents perhaps the first attempt to use greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets to inform the long-term design of a city. The project was a collaborative partnership between the Design Centre for Sustainability at the University of British Columbia, known for advancing the science and application of sustainable community design strategies, and the City of North Vancouver, known for its deep and abiding commitment to urban sustainability.Read the rest of professor Patrick M. Condon's blog here:
Tories Curtail Key Environment Provisions
Significant changes to anti-pollution rules tacked on to budget last month will result in more power to craft narrow environmental assessments on controversial projects. Read article here:Vancouver School Board Introduces High School Sustainability Course
SOLARIS, a 4 credit, year long course in sustainability, is being offered to Vancouver students in grades 11 and 12. The course will focus on a range of topics from housing and transportation to forestry and fisheries. Read more here.Richmond approves $60-million to buy Garden City lands
Although Mayor Malcolm Brodie didn't like the terms of the deal, he said a deal's been brokered with the Musqueam Indian Band and the Canada Lands Company, and it wouldn't be appropriate for him to vote against it at this point.
But Brodie made his position clear during the special meeting of council Mionday, in which Coun. Sue Halsey-Brandt participated via conference call.
"It's not the deal I would have made," he said.
West Coast Environmental Law Comments on Metro Vancouver 2040 Shaping Our Future
West Coast provided comments on Metro Vancouver’s latest draft of a new Regional Growth Strategy (RGS), entitled Metro Vancouver 2040: Shaping Our Future ( November 2009 draft). While West Coast supports the direction and goals of the new draft RGS and the range of strategies proposed, we have concerns that many of the actions and processes stipulated as the means to accomplish those goals reflect a lack of commitment to concerted, firm action by member municipalities.
A New Climate for Conservation - Nature, Carbon and Climate Change in British Columbia - Full Report
This report reviews the scientific and technical literature on climate change and biodiversity in British Columbia. It examines the scientific rationale behind the need for conserving natural ecosystems as a critical component of a climate action plan in four key areas: sequestering carbon, avoiding emissions, managing resilience and maximizing stocks and flows of ecosystem services.
