Support a province-wide pesticide ban

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  As you have probably heard, the BC Government is consulting on a province-wide ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides.  Although Victoria has banned the use of cosmetic pesticides, you can still buy them (only the province can ban the sale).  The support of millions of British Columbians is now needed to achieve success.
  
• Consider these pesticide facts.
• Your help is greatly appreciated - please take action below below and circulate widely. Let's take 5 minutes & do it!
• Send a letter to the BC government.
• Print the Ban Pesticides poster and put it in your window.
• Sierra Victoria is a member of Pesticide-Free BC, a coalition of organizations and individuals that advocates for a ban on the sale and use of non-essential, "cosmetic" lawn and garden pesticides in BC.
  

• Transition Victoria: With the combined impacts of the climate crisis, peak oil, and economic instability, communities and individuals in Canada and around the world are facing drastic changes to our ways of life. The Transition Town movement offers a creative, proactive approach for communities to design their own way into a post-carbon future. Together, we can design practical, doable steps to get off the oil-addicted treadmill and create a way of living that's more connected, more resilient and more climate-friendly. Watch a Transition Town video. The Victoria Regional Transition Initiative is now up and running, with Sierra Victoria an active and enthusiastic participant. We are one of eight Transition communities in Canada. Intrigued? Want to be part of the change? Check out the next event in your area, join our Google group or email us here.

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• Idle-Wise campaign: One small action by a single person does have enormous impact.  Alone, it is a symbol – an example to many others.  When multiplied over hundreds, thousands and millions, it can be world-changing.  One small action every person can take is to shut off their vehicle if idling for 10 seconds or more, and to urge others do the same.  Turning off your engine saves gas and money, as well as cutting down on CO2 and air pollution.  We no longer accept people littering or giving us their second hand cigarette smoke.  Vehicle idling has even more serious implications, so let’s shut off our idle engines and educate other people to do the same. 

  Download our Turn it Off flyer.

• Download our Tire Care Clinic Handbook.

• Would you like to help with our anti-idling campaign?  Taking a minute to put an anti-idling sticker on your car window, five minutes to educate a friend, or a couple of hours to staff a table informing the public, are all important and valuable.  Please contact Patricia at victoria@sierraclub.bc.ca if you would like to get involved.

  Anti-pesticide campaign: The focus of this campaign is to reduce toxic pesticides in our ecosystems. The Sierra Club Victoria Group is a member of Pesticide-Free CRD, a coalition of organizations and individuals in the Capital Regional District (CRD) that is concerned with the use of pesticides in our community. The coalition advocates for legislation and bylaws that restrict the non-essential use of pesticides, and it promotes education programs that provide information to the public on alternative methods for managing pests.

• Sustainable urban planning: The Capital Regional District has proposed an amendment to the Regional Growth Strategy (RGS) that would extend the Urban Containment Boundary in Highlands to enable the CRD to provide water and sewer services to the Bear Mountain Comprehensive Development Area. The Sierra Club Victoria Group opposes the amendment as development of the area will contribute to urban sprawl, compound existing traffic congestion, overwhelm water and sewer infrastructure, and deplete the region’s natural resources.

• Transportation: Plans for a busway down Douglas Street are underway. Though the $30 million busway project will improve public transit in this congested corridor, it is important that we consider all our options. Many cities, like Portland Oregon and Tacoma Washington, have found that light rail attracts far more riders than buses. Electric-powered rail also generates far less CO2 than a diesel-powered bus. Shouldn't we be investing in LRT?

• Cool Capital Campaign:  In coalition with dozens of advocacy groups, businesses, and faith-based organizations, the Sierra Club Victoria Group successfully led a campaign to adopt and implement the new CRD Climate Action Plan which will cut our region's greenhouse gas emissions one-third by 2020.

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  Organic Compost Collection: In the CRD, 30% or 40,000 tonnes, of our waste materials are organic. That is material that doesn't belong in the landfill. Organic compost is a valuable commodity for both the methane it emits and the fertile nutrients it offers. Throwing organics in the garbage is throwing away money. It's time for a region-wide compost collection programme. 

• Sewage treatment (including using sewage as a resource)   and water issues

• Ecosystem protection

• Organic gardening and sustainable lifestyles

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• Volunteer!  We need your help to achieve these and other goals. If you would like to volunteer, please contact us at victoria@sierraclub.bc.ca. See  "volunteer" for more details.

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