Issue 7

http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/89/Welcome to Metro Vancouver Update

Welcome to Metro Vancouver Update

<div class="ExternalClass37AC61D0A464495EBA59583ABD076DE9">Welcome to the Metro Vancouver Update, bringing you news and information from around the region. This month we highlight: a major bequest for our Regional Parks, information on returning unused medications to pharmacies, updates on disposal bans, our waste-to-energy facility, a sewage pump station, regional maps as well as information on Metro Vancouver TV programs and events, and a special message from our Board Chair Greg Moore.Metro Vancouver is a partnership of 21 municipalities, one Electoral Area and one Treaty First Nation that collaboratively plans and delivers services throughout the region. Our core services are drinking water, wastewater treatment, and solid waste management – garbage and recycling. Metro Vancouver also regulates air quality, plans for urban growth, manages a regional parks system, and provides affordable housing. Metro Vancouver is governed by a Board of Directors of elected officials from each local authority. <a name="Shaping Our Future"></a>A Message from Metro Vancouver Board Chair Greg Moore Shaping Our Future: Decisions Today for Tomorrow's Livable RegionIn the next 25 years, our region is expected to grow by one million people and 500,000 new jobs.Transportation is vital in our region, and expanding and supporting an efficient transportation system to connect our communities will benefit residents and business.Over the next six weeks in a Special Edition Metro Vancouver Blog, I will highlight examples that illustrate the connection between investing in transit and achieving the goals laid out in Metro Vancouver’s <a href="/services/regional-planning/metro-vancouver-2050/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">regional growth strategy</a>. You can read the <a href="http://metrovancouverblog.org/2015/03/18/chair-update-decisions-today-for-tomorrows-livable-region/" target="_blank">first edition</a>, subscribe to the blog to read the next installments, and leave comments about these critical issues for our region today and in the future. </div>

Welcome

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In this issue

Generous Bequest Benefits Stewardship of Regional Parks	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/90/Generous Bequest Benefits Stewardship of Regional Parks	Generous Bequest Benefits Stewardship of Regional Parks	<div class="ExternalClass30A4A0DCD6D44CBCA27181C266F4CEBD"><p>Long-time Burnaby resident George Ross so enjoyed walking forested trails that to show his appreciation for Metro Vancouver’s <a href="/services/parks/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">Regional Parks</a> he left an extremely generous bequest of $2.8 million in his estate.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/KanakaFunding.jpg	Read more...	Parks	Full
Metro Vancouver Residents Are Returning Expired Medications	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/91/Metro Vancouver Residents Are Returning Expired Medications	Metro Vancouver Residents Are Returning Expired Medications	<div class="ExternalClass48E81DDE284C462494D7E0D0EB3B2500"><p>Metro Vancouver residents are becoming expert at what we should and shouldn't flush and throw away.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/ExpiredMeds.jpg	Read more...	Expired Medications	Full
Map of the Month: Integrating Land Use & Transportation	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/92/Map of the Month: Integrating Land Use & Transportation	Map of the Month: Integrating Land Use & Transportation	<div class="ExternalClass49DCA66E5BED4DD3A782FCEA9E514322"><p>Metro Vancouver regularly issues <a href="/services/regional-planning/regional-planning-maps/map-of-the-month/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">Maps of the Month</a> that convey information about specific regional growth and development issues. The most-recent map, <a href="/services/regional-planning/PlanningPublications/Four_Decades_of_Integrating_Land_Use_and_Transportation_in_MV.pdf" target="_blank">Four Decades of Integrating Land Use and Transportation in Metro Vancouver</a>, traces the history of how land use and transportation plans have evolved since 1968.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/MapOfTheMonthMarch.jpg	Read more...	Regional Planning	Full
Lynn Sewage Pumping Station Upgrade	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/93/Lynn Sewage Pumping Station Upgrade	Lynn Sewage Pumping Station Upgrade	<div class="ExternalClassA4155F580D654010AE6D1E0B432DDE8C"><p>The upgrade to the Lynn Sewage Pumping Station in the City of North Vancouver is now complete, and will benefit generations of Metro Vancouver residents to come.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/LynnSewageUpgrade.jpg	Read more...	Liquid Waste	Full
Project Reduces Emissions at Waste-to-Energy Facility	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/94/Project Reduces Emissions at Waste-to-Energy Facility	Project Reduces Emissions at Waste-to-Energy Facility	<div class="ExternalClass0DD2D8D43C3744BE8CC93996410095FA"><p>A Nitrogen Oxides (NO<sub>x</sub>) Reduction Project implemented at Metro Vancouver's <a href="/services/solid-waste/about/wte/pages/04.aspx" target="_blank">waste-to-energy facility</a> in Burnaby has resulted in NO<sub>x</sub> emission levels reductions to 30 percent below the new provincial <em>Guideline for Emissions from Municipal Solid Waste Combustion (Guideline)</em>, and over 50 percent lower than the facility's 2013 average emission levels.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/wte1.png	Read more...	Air Quality	Full
Organics and Clean Wood Disposal Ban Updates	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/95/Organics and Clean Wood Disposal Ban Updates	Organics and Clean Wood Disposal Ban Updates	<div class="ExternalClass6162ED02069F47019097383817182230"><p>The <a href="/services/solid-waste/recycling-programs/disposal-ban/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">bans</a> to keep food waste and clean wood out of landfills came into effect on January 1. And, based on inspections to date at Metro Vancouver waste disposal facilities, the news is good. Inspection results indicate that large generators of organic materials (food and garden waste) are successfully recycling these materials, and not disposing of them in the garbage.</p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/CleanWood.jpg	Read more...	Solid Waste	Full
Metro Vancouver Revises Tipping Fees	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/96/Metro Vancouver Revises Tipping Fees	Metro Vancouver Revises Tipping Fees	<div class="ExternalClassA6BB426D0EE54E07AA979A24632EBBEC"><p>To better reflect the cost of managing waste, and encourage commercial haulers to use regional facilities, as of April 6, 2015, new tipping fees will be introduced based on load sizes. </p></div>	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/PublishingImages/TippingFeeChanges.jpg	Read more...	Solid Waste	Full

Check It Out	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/97/Check It Out	Check It Out	<div class="ExternalClassB785F8D57A794BF59AD81892346151F1"><p>The spring edition of <a href="/services/parks/ParksPublications/CIO-Spring2015.pdf" target="_blank">Check It Out</a> is now available.</p> Register for programs or drop in to events that Metro Vancouver offers throughout the region.<p> </p></div>	Read more...	Check It Out	SummaryBottom
Metro Vancouver’s Television Programs: The Sustainable Region & Metro Vancouver Close Up	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/98/Metro Vancouver’s Television Programs: The Sustainable Region & Metro Vancouver Close Up	Metro Vancouver’s Television Programs: The Sustainable Region & Metro Vancouver Close Up	<div class="ExternalClass6C74E30AF8FF4C3FA69408A93B04AC00"><p>The Sustainable Region TV series examines how Metro Vancouver manages growth, protects the environment, and delivers vital services to residents, businesses, and institutions in the region. Learn how major capital projects move from concept to reality, the environmental challenges we face, and the many programs offered in Metro Vancouver Regional Parks.</p><p>This month, Metro Vancouver Close Up looks at:</p><p><a href="/media-room/video-gallery/metro-vancouver-close-up/4093699175001" target="_blank">Maple Ridge LEED Buildings</a>: Fighting fires takes a lot of water, but operations at this Maple Ridge fire hall certainly don't! See how the newly rebuilt fire hall, as well as the Maple Ridge SPCA building, use a variety of innovations to keep water and energy use as low as possible.</p><p><a href="/media-room/video-gallery/metro-vancouver-close-up/4093699177001" target="_blank">Generous Burnaby Man Remembers Regional Parks</a>: Metro Vancouver received a significant financial bequest from the estate of a Metro Vancouver resident, earmarked to support the Regional Parks system. Find out who made this generous donation and how it will be spent.</p><p><a href="/media-room/video-gallery/metro-vancouver-close-up/4093699176001" target="_blank">Green Collar Career Conference – Doing Good & Making Money</a>: Metro Vancouver students recently learned that personal prosperity and a commitment to sustainability are absolutely compatible. Learn why students from across our region spent their Saturday exploring opportunities in the green economy.</p><p>These episodes air on Shaw TV4, Delta Cable 4 and Novus TV4.</p><p>Shaw TV 4: Wed 7:30pm; Sat 12:30pm; Mon 3:30pm; Tues 11pm<br> NVTV4: Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri at 8:30pm; Tues, Thurs, Sat at 9am & 3:30pm<br> Delta TV: Sun/Mon at 8am & 2pm; Mon-Fri at 11:30am<br> And they are always available online.</p></div>	Read more...	Sustainable Region TV	SummaryBottom
Upcoming Events	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/99/Upcoming Events	Upcoming Events	<div class="ExternalClassACEA4C7CBFBD4473812546F27085169C"><p><strong>Sustainability Community Breakfast</strong> </p><p><strong>On-site Organics Management</strong><br> April 15, 7:30 - 9 am, BCIT Downtown, 555 Seymour St., Vancouver</p><p>Speakers: TBD</p><p><a href="/events/community-breakfasts/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">Information & Registration</a></p> </div>	Read more...	Events	SummaryBottom
Did You Know?	http://www.metrovancouver.org/metroupdate/issue-7/100/Did You Know?	Did You Know?	<div class="ExternalClass2C2BF7F0B34840718C2E7D60E8753020"><ul><li>Studies have determined that much of the food found in Metro Vancouver residential garbage was never even used.<br> <br>Food waste in the garbage creates methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. The environmental consequences, however, are not just limited to food rotting in landfills. The resources required to grow, package, and transport that food are also wasted. Find out about <a href="/services/solid-waste/food-scraps-recycling/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank"> recycling food waste</a>.<br><br></li><li>Food waste is also put down sinks and toilets and taxes our sewage system. If we reduce the amount of food waste in the liquid waste stream, we can defer additional maintenance costs and even the need for more treatment facilities. More than a million residents are expected to move into our region in the coming decades, and taking preventative measures will help us avoid environmental and financial costs.<br><br></li><li>Metro Vancouver maintains the very-popular <a href="/services/parks/parks-greenways-reserves/grouse-grind" target="_blank"> Grouse Grind</a> hiking trail, and despite the recent unseasonably warm weather, the trail remains closed. This seasonal closure is largely required to preserve the trail. When hikers ignore the closure, the trail can be damaged, leading to erosion and exposed tree roots, which can cause trees to die and be removed. Damage by winter hikers can actually delay the spring opening because of the significant laborious work required to prepare the trail for the spring and summer. </li></ul></div>	Read more...	Did You Know	SummaryBottom