On July 15, I made a presentation to Vernon city council about adopting some parts of the Greenest City Action Plan developed by the City of Vancouver.
The City of Vancouver is planning to become the greenest city in the world by the year 2020.
The action plan has already increased employment in the city by 18 per cent. They have created 28,000 new green jobs. The mayor of Vancouver researched best practices from leading green cities around the world.
The plan consists of 75 quick-start actions that can be used immediately. The city will double the number of green jobs over 2010 levels by 2020. Vancouver's green economy is growing more than twice as fast as traditional sectors.
Vancouver has proven that a city can grown and prosper and still become a green capital.
The City of Vancouver has proven that we can transform cities and enjoy cleaner air, more green space, healthier people and create new job opportunities at the same time.
The City of Vancouver uses 18 pure electric vehicles, plus 37 hybrid electric vehicles and 13 electric bicycles.
This action alone has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 9.5 per cent below 2007 levels.
Some of Vancouver's Greenest City Action Plan can be adopted by our city, creating employment here and saving money on health and environment costs in the future.
Terry Dyck
Vernon