Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

ADAM OLSEN -- Please have your voice heard and take part in the consultation


Remember when fast food containers were made of styrofoam? Well those days are long gone and public awareness continues to grow with respect to the huge amount of single-use waste collecting in our landfills and recycling depots.

In recent times special attention is focusing on the impact of plastic items that are finding their way into our aquatic environments and causing tremendous problems for marine animals and the overall health of our oceans.

I wrote a post back in January called “Reduce, reuse, recycle. In that order”.  It was about our rate of consumption and our ravenous appetite devouring the earth's limited resources at a rapid pace. This week, the provincial government announced they are planning to expand our recycling efforts and they want the public's input on what should and should not be included.

This is a priority that I and my colleagues share with our BC NDP colleagues and we are happy they have started this process. 23 British Columbia communities have begun to take action on single-use plastic items and in 2018 the City of Victoria put a ban on plastic shopping bags. Despite a legal challenge to the Victoria bylaw, the province wants to work with the local and federal leaders on this issue. We are committed to finding solutions!

Seeking public input
The four areas they are seeking your response are:
  1. Bans on single-use plastics,
  2. Expanding extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs to increase recycling options,
  3. Increasing deposit rates to ensure more bottle and beverage containers are returned, and
  4. Increasing the amount of recycled plastic content is in new products.

The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change Strategy has provided a detailed policy brief that I encourage you to read. They are seeking your advice and feedback on these important issues. They suggest increasing deposit rates on all containers from $0.05 to $0.10 and one aspect I would like your feedback on is if the deposit rate should go even higher so we can recover closer to 100% of those containers.

Please have your voice heard and take part in the consultation.
  1. Complete the public survey at: https://cleanbc.gov.bc.ca/plastics
  2. Send a formal submission to: Plastics@gov.bc.ca Read the guidelines for formal submissions at: https://cleanbc.gov.bc.ca/plastics
  3. Email your comments to: Plastics@gov.bc.ca
  4. Mail your comments to:
    Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy – Recycling Regulation Amendments
    PO Box 9341 Stn Prov Govt
    Victoria, BC V8W 9M1




Adam Olsen ... is a Green Party Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for Saanich North and the Islands.

Born in Victoria, BC in 1976, Adam has lived, worked and played his entire life on the Saanich Peninsula. He is a member of Tsartlip First Nation (W̱JOȽEȽP), where he and his wife, Emily, are raising their two children, Silas and Ella.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Interfor Moves Headquarters Out of BC as Forestry Crisis Continues

NDP policies are driving businesses out of B.C., and the forestry industry just suffered yet another calamity. Interfor, a BC company founded more than 60 years ago and now one of the world's largest lumber producers, is moving its headquarters from Burnaby, BC to Atlanta, Georgia. As BC’s forestry sector faces mill closures and mounting uncertainty, this move is another warning sign that the crisis is deepening and conditions are fatal. “This is the NDP’s record: endless job losses with no hope in sight for the forestry sector,” said Ward Stamer, Shadow Minister for Forestry. “Interfor still has three mills in BC which are now in serious jeopardy, and it is likely we will see even more companies pull out of BC. The NDP government is suffocating the forestry industry with high taxes, excessive regulations, and permitting delays, while DRIPA has made it impossible to plan for the future.” “Decisions like this are sadly not surprising given the NDP’s indifference if not hostility tow...
Post a Comment
Read more

Okanagan Farmers Face NDP-Created Water Crisis ~~ BC Conservatives

Okanagan farmers are facing a water crisis as government-imposed restrictions threaten to kill their crops and destroy one of B.C.’s most important agricultural industries. In perhaps the most water-rich province in the country, our farmers have been left high and dry by the NDP government. For nine weeks, Okanagan and Shuswap farmers have proposed solutions, only to be met with NDP foot-dragging. Now forest fires have come to these regions as they are simultaneously reckoning with a water crisis that has been made worse through years of government inaction. Vernon-area farms have lost 70 percent of their water, while Kelowna and Summerland growers face severe restrictions. This situation is unacceptable and cannot continue. Ian Paton, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, said the NDP is once again forcing farmers to pay for its own failure to plan. "Farmers and ranchers must be listened to when decisions affecting their livelihoods are made, and under the NDP, they aren’t," said...
Post a Comment
Read more

NDP Hypocritically Admits Natural Gas Power Was Needed All Along ~~ BC Conservatives

The NDP just got caught buying back the exact kind of power plant it spent years telling British Columbians they didn't need. The NDP government announced today that BC Hydro is purchasing the Island Generation natural gas facility in Campbell River, an admission that its electrification-only energy policy was never realistic. The 275-megawatt plant was originally privately owned yet kept to a minimal backup role under the NDP, operating just 15 days a year on average. Now, with demand outpacing what the NDP's plan can support, the government is spending taxpayer funds on the very gas capacity it once treated as obsolete. "You cannot electrify everything and pretend natural gas doesn't matter," said Larry Neufeld, Shadow Minister for Energy.  "Buying back a gas plant they once wrote off is proof their own plan couldn't keep the lights on. It's a step towards more energy reality, but the government needs to go further and scrap the impending province-w...
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more