GC 2020
657 results found
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Restore nature in Stanley Park by banning cars
Ban private vehicles altogether - a public streetcar circling the park is all that's necessary. Work towards removal of Stanley Park Causeway altogether, providing an alternate crossing of the inlet. Every major remaining urban forest in BC has a highway running through it (e.g. Goldstream, Cathedral Grove). What message does that send out, I wonder?
13 votes -
rickshaw stands at all outlying skytrain stations organized through a central dispatch service
One of the largest obstacles to greater transit use for families, the elderly and people with baggage is the few blocks between home and a station. A rickshaw service located at each outlying station would facilitate access for these users. The short trips and high volume would result in reasonable rates. Existing communication technology would create an efficient and accessible dispatch system.
13 votes -
Re-Utilizing the heat from potable water ( Dishwasher, Shower, ... )
We could use the potential heat from our shower, dishwasher and other source of hot water that we utilize everyday and utilize the energy to heat the hot water again ( Re-use it for a thermal recovery )
13 votesThe South East False Creek Neighbourhood Energy Utility is one of 4 systems in the world where heat is recovered from sewage and distributed to the South East False Creek Neighbourhood. for a district energy system.
www.vancouver.ca/sustainability/building_neu.htm -
Permit zoning for walkable, livable, amenity rich single family and human-scale neighbourhoods
Six 2000 square feet single family houses can fit on two existing 33 x 120 foot lots. The alleys are narrow streets and the streets become narrow streets to maintain green space. The density supports local amenities that you can walk or cycle to. The increased amenities provide more local jobs. It means you can get what you need locally without a car. Connect these neighbourhoods with effective public transit which is started by permitting these neighbourhoods around sky train stations and bus loops. Laneway housing is part of this solution. Design the neighbourhood as if you had not cars.…
13 votes -
Change the Building Code to require water efficient fixtures in a wider range of house renovations
The building code specifies the kinds of efficiencies required by water fixtures in all buildings. Currently a home owner has to be undertaking a significant renovation ($95 000 value) before permits are required. The code could be changed to lower that threshold (to $50,000), thereby increasing the number of homes that would be required by law to install fixtures with a high degree of water efficiency.
12 votesIncluded in the Draft Greenest City Action Plan.
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Mobile bike mechanics on the bike routes: create licensing and locations
Use the model Beijing has for bike repair people. There are bike repair carts along the major bike routes in Beijing. These carts can do most minor repairs on the spot and help you get to work. If you break down along the way, you can give them a call on your cellphone and they'll bike over and fix you up. It would be nice to have designated locations along major bike routes and business licenses for this type of entrepreneur.
12 votes -
For the City to be Green, the Province must be Green. Stop Oil and Gas development in the interior.
The city is supported financially by the province. It is disingenuous to claim to be the greenest city in the world, while receiving money from the development of oil and gas extraction in our interior. Most of the population of BC lives in vancouver. It is our tacit approval that allows it. Vote No!
12 votesThe City is trying to it’s part within it’s own operations and broadly in the community to reduce dependance on fossil fuels. We will continue to advocate for policy and legislation that supports climate protection efforts.
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Put turnstiles into all sky train and Canada Line stations - collect easy revenue for Translink
Many more people than we realize are using sky train lines without paying. Meanwhile Translink is short the funding they need to expand the transit network and enhance existing service. This seems like an easy step to increase revenue, and would possibly reduce costs by not requiring Translink staff to be checking tickets on trains.
12 votesTransLink jurisdiction. TransLink is planning to instile turnstiles in stations in the very near future, with smart card technology coming to the region by 2013.
http://www.translink.ca/en/Be-Part-of-the-Plan/Projects/Electronic-Fare-Cards.aspx
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Encourage Eco-Industrial Parks & Eco-Business Zones
The city can develop an eco-business strategy to help build networks of businesses who work together to : reduce their impacts, resource consumption rates, strain on public infrastructure, and, of course, costs.
Eco-Industrial Parks and eco-business zones are effective models for greening new and existing industry/business activity: By acting collectively, and taking lessons from natural systems, we can create new green business opportunities and transform existing employment areas to use less resources like water & energy, and to attract progressive new green businesses to town.
12 votesNeed to research eco-industrial practices. Strathcona is implementing at a neighbourhood scale. This idea is included in the draft Greenest City Action Plan.
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Provide home owners with a tax rebate for installing compostable toilets.
The availability of composting toilets is growing, with a variety of kinds to suit home owners' purposes. Our clean water sources in Canada are abundant, but also the equivalent to gold on an international scale: we should treat it this way. Let's not flush our potable water sources down the toilet. Composting toilets use little to no water at all. We should provide incentives for Canadians to make this change.
12 votesNot specifically part of Draft Greenest City Action Plan, but efficient fixtures and incentives are.
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Educate Motor Vehicle Drivers on Sharing the Road with Cyclists
It's apparent that Vehicle Drivers in BC are under eduacted on safe practices to use when sharing the road with cyclists. This makes it dangerous for people who want to cycle all over the city because they feel they are increasing their risk of getting injured. BC Driver's licensing could include more requirements of knowledge regarding sharing the road. A class on bicycle safety for cyclists could also improve safety for bikers and car drivers on Vancouver streets.
12 votes -
Enforce smoking and littering bylaws
Fines should be high enough to cover the cost of enforcement.
And remember to include Translink - it is one of the worst offenders. It does nothing about operators who smoke on or near public transit vehicles or to enforce skytrain, seabus, and bus terminal smoking bans.
12 votes -
Green computing in all government offices
Cloud computing servers that run on renewable wind energy also minimize the need for computer upgrades, high-power servers that stay on all night, and costly software licences. Google has invested hundreds of millions in green power and offers government grade office services at a fraction of current costs. They also recycle computer parts to create their data centres. By using these services, we become greener.
http://gigaom.com/cleantech/google-buys-wind-power-first-deal-for-google-energy/
http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/government/index.html
http://www.google.com/corporate/green/datacenters/server-retirement.html
12 votesGood ideas. We are looking for all kinds of opportunities for renewable energy generation, waste heat recovery and energy conservation. Current good examples of waste heat recovery are in newer swimming pools and skating rinks. See a good example though the following link: http://vancouver.ca/parks/info/2010Olympics/pdf/Hillcrest.pdf
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Get rid of the chlorine in our swimming pools and water supply. even the new 2010 pool has chlorine
get rid of the chlorine in our swimming pools and water supply. even the new pool by the nat bailey stadium has chlorine, even though the 2010 olympic buildings, of which this was a part, were supposed to be green. chlorine is NOT green.
12 votes -
Solar/Electric Powered Buses
Get more solar or electric powered buses to lower vehicle exhaust and decrease Greenhouse gases
12 votes -
Reduce electrical permits for solar (saving...) Right now the cost of an electrical permit for a
Right now the cost of an electrical permit for a solar photovoltaic system is three times the cost of one for a diesel generator of the same capacity. By reducing this cost it would encourage green energy while not significantly affecting city revenues.
12 votesIn order to meet the target of carbon neutral buildings by 2020 the draft Greenest City Action Plan will address ways and means of making alternative energy systems more affordable.
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12 votes
Not free, but we are creating financing tools and incentives to increase affordability of these upgrades
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Create a free bus lottery for transit riders
Create a free lottery to randomly reward people who ride the bus. Fund the bus rider's jackpot by placing a small levy on Vancouver parking meters. If each meter contributed 50 cents per day on average, we'd have a daily prize pool of around $4000. This is enough to create some small but significant instant cash prizes. The media attention from this initiative would help to encourage ridership as much as the prizes themselves would.
12 votes -
Promote & encourage the use of publically-owned properties with green space for recreation & leisure
Promote and encourage the use of publically-owned green space for recreation and leisure. For example, the RCMP Fairmont Academy at 4949 Heather. Encourage tree planting, landscaping and installation of benches, etc. to improve the aesthetics and experience of these sites.
11 votes -
Eliminate residential curbside recycling collection of packaging materials
BC is a world wide leader in extended producer responsibility (EPR) policy. Also known as "product stewardship", current legislation covers items such as tires, paint, beverage containers, and electronics. High recycling rates of these materials are achieved through consumer "take back" programs, where recyclable items are returned to retail stores or taken to depots. EPR policy is centred on the notion of placing waste management/recycling responsibility of products that become waste squarely on the shoulders of the industries that produce these items in the first place. The benefit of EPR is that it shifts the costs of managing these items…
11 votes
