VANOC Creates Long-Term Affordable Housing

The Province of British Columbia and the Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympics are partnering together to create 156 long-term affordable housing units.

The plan will see 320 temporary housing units that will be used during the Winter Olympics transformed into 156 permanent affordable housing units in 6 communities across the province: Chetwynd, Chilliwack, Enderby, Saanich, Sechelt and Surrey.

Read more here.

Vancouver 2010 and Earth Day

In honour of Earth Day I thought I'd point you back to VANOCs Sustainability Report that was released March 31, 2008 and was the subject of a previous blog post.

Areas VANOC says it's working on improving and/or focusing on over the next 12 months include:

• transportation planning
• avoiding disruption or displacement in inner-city communities during Games-time
• additional reductions in carbon emissions and development of a program for neutralizing or offsetting the carbon footprint of the Games
• food and beverage services
• diverting further waste from landfill
• training, recruitment and business opportunities for inner-city residents and businesses, Aboriginal communities, persons with a disability, and social and environmental enterprises
• public participation opportunities that increase awareness of sustainable living choices

For the complete report please visit VANOCs website here.

VANOC Releases 2006-2007 Sustainability Report

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic Games (VANOC) is committed to delivering a socially, economically and environmentally responsible Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. As a part of this responsibility they have released their second sustainability report.

Areas that VANOC has made progress in:

• building venues on compact sites that minimize waste from construction
• building venues that:
• conserve water and energy
• reduce greenhouse gas/carbon emissions
• provide barrier-free accessibility
• compliance with environmental regulations
• training opportunities for inner-city youth
• support for housing legacies
• ethical sourcing and sustainable purchasing
• economic opportunities for Aboriginal peoples
• raising awareness about sport among Aboriginal communities
• raising awareness about Paralympic sports locally
• workforce safety

Areas VANOC says it's working on improving and/or focusing on over the next 12 months include:

• transportation planning
• avoiding disruption or displacement in inner-city communities during Games-time
• additional reductions in carbon emissions and development of a program for neutralizing or offsetting the carbon footprint of the Games
• food and beverage services
• diverting further waste from landfill
• training, recruitment and business opportunities for inner-city residents and businesses, Aboriginal communities, persons with a disability, and social and environmental enterprises
• public participation opportunities that increase awareness of sustainable living choices

More on sustainability and Vancouver 2010 from VANOC here.