The Hartland landfill processes 140,000 tonnes of solid waste per year, of which 1.7% is either polystyrene (PS) or expanded polystyrene (EPS).^1,2 This doesn't sound like a great deal when measured in terms of mass. By volume, however, this converts to approximately 11,951 m³ (excluding pre- and post-burial compaction).^*

Polystyrene is a long chain hydrocarbon with every other carbon connected to a phenyl group. Two different types of polystyrene are used in most packaging applications: foamed or expanded (EPS), and non-expanded (PS). EPS is utilized for meat trays, appliance and electronic packaging and take-out containers, while PS is used for plastic cutlery, disposable plates and CD jewel cases.³

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The Michigan Street Community Garden was created in 1999 when LifeCycles, the JBCP and interested community members approached the British Columbia Buildings Corporation (BCBC) about constructing a community garden on a vacant greenspace near the NE corner of Menzies and Michigan streets. BCBC, along with the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, generously supported this initiative and entered into a 5-year lease agreement with the Community Garden Collective.

Construction of the Garden was completed in just 3 months, and with an original budget of only $500, the community built 20 raised garden plots, a tool shed (cob house), fence, compost bins, waterwise irrigation, and a communal garden area. Covering approximately 5,000 square feet, and comprised of a mix of individual (75%) and community (25%) allotment plots, the Garden contains more than 60 varieties of fruits and vegetables.

Designed specifically to grow food for distribution within the local community, the 20 individual plots, averaging 4 x 16 feet, are leased on an annual basis, with all gardeners helping to grow and maintain the community plots.
During the growing season, 5 or 6 large trays of fruit, vegetables, herbs and decorative flowers are taken weekly to the JBCP where the food is prepared and either served on-site or distributed to those in need through the James Bay Food Cupboard.

Bordering an existing parking lot, the Garden was built with the understanding that the land could eventually be utilized for further development of the Legislature's South Block under the Victoria Accord Agreement. Connie McCann, Constituency Assistant to MLA Carole James, characterizes this as a "zoning issue." At present, the Garden is zoned as part of the Comprehensive Development Zone (CD-2), and sub-zoned as the Legislative Precinct Comprehensive — LP-2B, which permits multiple uses including commercial-residential buildings and surface parking. Unfortunately, the 5-year lease has expired and is unlikely to be renewed as the successor to BCBC, Accommodation and Real Estate Services (ARES), a branch of the Ministry of Labour and Citizens' Services, expects to pursue other land use options.

In a 2006 Council meeting, the City of Victoria voted to renew the Legislative Precinct Master Development Agreement (MDA) for 4 years beyond June 3, 2006. According to Brian Sikstrom, Senior Planner with the City of Victoria, "the next steps haven't been discussed with the Province yet, and will likely involve reviewing the existing agreement and preparing an updated one." Julius Maslovat, one of the community gardeners, recently expressed that the existing MDA does "not speak specifically to the future of the Michigan Street site" and that a revised MDA is needed to provide a framework for future community planning and rezoning initiatives between the Province and the City of Victoria.

Other cities such as Montreal and Seattle can boast as many as 100 Community Gardens, yet in our "Garden City" we are hard-pressed to protect the handful that we have. In a policy document released September 2005, the City of Victoria pledges to "maintain existing community gardens and protect local food production." The City also recognized the many benefits of community gardens that include increasing the amount of greenspace, the building of communities by fostering interaction and sharing, educational opportunities, and the assistance to low-income people.

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Community building and sustainable living are two ideas that few people can quarrel with, but when it comes down to it most of us just don't have a clue where to start. Well now there is a new group in James Bay that is working to bring these concepts down to Earth by bringing people together, online and off, to share simple and practical techniques for making a more sustainable and livable James Bay.

In early June the James Bay Sustainability Commons (JBSC) launched their website and blog at a well-attended public meeting held at Moka House, Shoal Point Fisherman's Wharf. Hosted by members Colleen Woods, Linda Chan, Bill Wilson, Stan Horner, Joyce Jason, and Fred and Heather Gonneville, they described in detail the mandate, mission statement of the JBSC and gave a preview of their website, while guest speaker Kris Obrigewitsch, of R~Earth, introduced us to composting as a landfill diversion strategy.

Last week (July 10), the JBSC held their second meeting at James Bay New Horizons, 234 Menzies Street. Guest speaker Paula Sobie of City Harvest spoke to a full house about converting urban lawns into food producing gardens.

Inspired by a discussion course on Choices for Sustainable Living offered by The Canadian Earth Institute, an affiliate of the Northwest Earth Institute in Portland, the mandate of the JBSC is to promote environmentally sustainable choices in James Bay. While a sense of community is at the core of all efforts to strengthen and build community, a sustainable community must constantly adjust to meet the current economic and social needs of its residents while ensuring that adequate resources remain for future generations.

Media headlines and an abundance of scientific research papers published in peer-reviewed journals attest to our changing climate: the 4,500 year-old Ward Hunt Ice Shelf is disintegrating; the permafrost is melting; retired entomologist Bob Duncan is growing lemons in North Saanich — they are flourishing; our polar bears’ world is disappearing; BC’s forests are now a net source of carbon, not a sink.

In 2005, 1,300 experts from 95 countries released the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment warning, “a majority of the life-supporting ecosystems on our planet are under severe stress.” To further elevate this sense of urgency, Dr. Andrew Weaver recently expressed in the Times Colonist that, “We know the climate has continued to warm…it takes time for people to wake up and smell the roses.” The University of Victoria climatologist and recipient of the shared 2007 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), also warned in a March 2007 Winnipeg lecture that “massive climate change can only be averted if we reduce our CO₂ emissions by 60 – 90% by 2050.”

The magnitude and accelerating pace of these large-scale climate changes can understandably fuel environmental fatigue: but community-based proactive initiatives can significantly offset this fatigue by focusing on local results-based projects that reduce our carbon footprint, and by promoting neighbourhood climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies.

Guided by the principles of Reduce, Recycle, Repair and Re-Use, the JBSC will engage the community and raise awareness of the importance of practicing and learning about sustainability by developing an online resource, highlighting local sustainability projects and initiatives, and supporting sustainability by collaborating with individuals and other local or external organizations with compatible goals.

The JBSC website will provide a forum where local citizens can find or make suggestions for relevant resources related to the practice of sustainability in the James Bay area and post their own sustainability projects. In addition JamesBay.org is proud to host the official JBSC discussion forum. This online resource will allow the community to participate in discussions related to sustainability, find out about future speakers or tours, and provide other opportunities to network.

Included among the JBSC local sustainability initiatives are: growing and buying food locally, conserving water, buying or consigning second hand goods, selecting goods with less packaging that are produced with a minimum of energy consumption, biking, car-sharing, saving seeds for future crops, removing lawns to grow food, composting kitchen waste, and repairing items for re-use or trade.

For more information about the James Bay Sustainability Commons, or to find out about our future meetings please contact jamesbaysustainability@gmail.com or visit their website at: http://jbsc.seedwiki.com/.

Please note that all are welcome to attend the next JBSC presentation August 14, 7:30 – 8:15 p.m. at James Bay New Horizons, 234 Menzies Street: Guest Speaker Geoff Johnson who will be presenting about growing food in containers on apartment balconies. For more information please contact jamesbaysustainability@gmail.com or Linda at 380-6383.

Level Ground Trading will provide Fair trade coffee.

Resources
R~Earth: http://www.r-earth.com/
International Composting Corporation: http://www.internationalcomposting.com/
Composting for Apartment Dwellers: http://www.perc.ca/PEN/1994-07-08/king.html/
Canadian Earth Institute: http://www.canadianearthinstitute.org/
Centre for Sustainable Community Development: http://www.sfu.ca/cscd/
City Harvest: http://www.cityharvest.ca/

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I am interested in writing articles about environmental issues, both local and global, that will stimulate healthy discussion. With at least 15,000 voices in James Bay, there will be no shortage of opinions. Whether we are discussing pesticides, the environmental impact of cruise ships, community gardens, goose droppings, crows, or climate change issues, everyone will have the opportunity to participate in this blog and, hopefully, will benefit from our collective knowledge.

Reed Kirkpatrick,
Science Editor
reed[at]fit2print.ca
Reed's Website

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