DUNCAN – The province is facing pushback over its water management strategy following four fish protection orders this summer, a management tool that runs counter to its troubled groundwater licensing initiative. Two years ago, agricultural irrigators in the Kokilah River watershed became the first to have water access curtailed under Section 88 of the Water …
environment
Pushback on plastics recycling
A provincial consultation on expanded producer responsibility for recycling has found scant support for including non-residential waste, including agricultural plastics, in the province’s recycling regulation. Instead, feedback on an intentions paper published last fall urged the province to leave management of agricultural plastics to Cleanfarms, a manufacturer-led stewardship organization based in Ontario. “Two respondents speaking …
Building soil structure with organic compost
SURREY – A three-year-old biofuel facility in the heart of the Lower Mainland has ramped up compost production, creating a new soil amendment source for BC growers. Owned by the City of Surrey and operated under a 25-year contract with Convertus, the Surrey biofuel facility is the first closed-loop organic waste facility in North America. …
No right to roam
VANCOUVER – The BC Court of Appeal has sided with Douglas Lake Cattle Co., overturning an earlier ruling granting recreational fishers access to Minnie and Stoney Lakes. The new judgment also firmly rejects claims of any public right to cross private lands to access Crown property in BC, often termed “right to roam.” This case …
BC farms reduce plastic
BC farms have made significant strides towards reducing plastic waste, and new federal funding will help them take additional steps to address the issue. CleanFarms, a manufacturer-led environmental stewardship organization based in Ontario, estimates BC farms generate 3,600 tonnes of waste plastic a year. This is down from nearly 4,000 tonnes in 2012. But the …
Organic matter regulations delayed
Chalk up delays in the province’s revision of the Organic Matter Recycling Regulation to COVID-19. “We were anticipating regulatory updates to occur in fall 2020. However, at this point we are expecting this to be delayed due to COVID-19,” the BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy told Country Life in BC this week. …