Airshed Management Planning in the Cariboo By Andy Motherwell Director, Area B Cariboo Regional District and Ric Raynor Director of Emergency Services City of Quesnel UBCM Conference 2004

 Air quality has been a long- standing issue in the Quesnel area  The City of Quesnel and adjacent Cariboo Regional District Electoral Areas have a population of about 20,000 residents near the confluence of the Quesnel and Fraser rivers  Forestry and mining continue to be key economic drivers for the area Introduction

 The Quesnel Air Quality Roundtable (QAQR) was formed because:  Quesnel experiences some of the worst air quality in the province (fine particulate matter)  Growing awareness of the concern for health and negative reputation of the community due to air pollution Introduction

 Focus will be on Quesnel, however Williams Lake, 120km to the south, also has an airshed planning process underway  Williams Lake process is about one year behind Quesnel Introduction

Presentation Overview  Participants  Project History  Funding  Process  Accomplishments  Summary

Participants  Quesnel Environmental Society (Roundtable Chair)  City of Quesnel  Ministry of Water, Land, and Air Protection (MWLAP)  Ministry of Forests  Ministry of Transportation  Cariboo Regional District  Northern Health Authority  Quesnel Community Health Council  North Cariboo Share  School District 28  11 industrial/commercial companies

Project History  Quesnel Environmental Society tabled project proposal developed with assistance from MWLAP and local government  Six-year project (half-way through year four) aimed at producing Airshed Management Plans for both communities

Project History  Benchmark: conduct a thorough scientific study upon which to base recommendations  Goal: tackle all identified sources of air pollution, from back yard residential burning to large industrial sources  Fundamental principle: implement recommendations while maintaining jobs

Financial Contributions Funding Source Quesnel Williams Lake MWLAP i.$37,500 per year for 5 years = $187,500 ii.“In-kind” contributions City $21,000 per year for 5 years = $105,000 HRDC$100,000- Local Health Authority $52,000 Cariboo Regional District $25,000

 Air technician salary  Air monitoring instruments  Computer dispersion modelling  Specialized air quality analysis (particle speciation)  Brochures/public education  Other air quality assessment needs e.g. woodstove survey if required  Advertising for woodstove “swap-outs” Funding Covers

 Industrial/commercial monitoring for ambient and emissions  Potential upgrades of pollution control equipment by industry as a result of process  Source characterization / speciation for industry  Existing MWLAP Cariboo Region Air Quality Program  Airshed meeting costs Funding Does Not Cover

Process  A formal, written agreement has been signed by the funding partners  Important to note that airshed planning process is a community initiative, and is not being led by MWLAP  MWLAP’s role: financial, administrative, and technical support to the process

Process  Industry supported the process because all sources of air pollution were to be tackled  Meetings held at lunch – hosted by the City of Quesnel  Good attendance from most participants continues

Process  True Roundtable – everyone is equal e.g. elected officials sit down with air quality technical experts, industry, environmentalists, municipal staff  Decisions made by consensus  Much “goodwill” among Roundtable

Accomplishments  Enhanced air quality monitoring through:  New “state of the art” monitoring equipment  Hiring a technician to run the monitoring network (reliable data)  Better public reporting on air quality (e.g. air quality advisories)

Accomplishments  Improved public education on air quality through:  Media releases  Open house by Roundtable  Air Quality Index reporting  Brochures  Web access to air quality information

Accomplishments  Initiated a Cariboo-wide woodstove swap program held in 2002 and 2003:  allowed consumers a 15% discount when they exchanged an old woodstove for an appliance that was CSA/EPA emissions certified

Accomplishments  Held an Automobile Emissions Testing Clinic in co-operation with Environment Canada:  325 vehicles tested  Raised public awareness about automobile emissions

Accomplishments  Identified early on that spring road dust should be immediately addressed  Technical subcommittee reviewed current traction material application and cleanup procedures  Action recommended to the Roundtable  Preliminary results indicate that spring time road dust levels have been reduced in the downtown area as a result of these actions

Accomplishments  Improved scientific understanding of sources causing poor air quality through:  Detailed inventory of emission sources  Reviewing existing data on air quality  Computer dispersion modelling of air pollution sources  Ranking of various source contributions

Accomplishments  Summarized all air quality assessment information into a report to form the scientific basis for the development of an airshed plan  Conclusion: all sectors will have to make improvements

Accomplishments  Developed 28 recommendations to be included in the airshed plan  The airshed plan has a 10-year implementation timeframe: 2004 – 2014 during which time there will be periodic reviews of progress and goals

Draft Airshed Plan Recommendations  Our 28 recommendations pertain to improvements in air quality by all sectors: industry, municipal and regional governments, home owners  The range of recommendations go from further restrictions on burning to improved dust control to improvements in emissions by industry  Public education is a key component of the airshed plan

Implementation  Voluntary process  Roundtable will request annual reports from all stakeholders outlining activities toward implementing airshed plan recommendations

Current Activities  Draft airshed plan for Quesnel being reviewed by the Roundtable  Public consultation to be late Fall, 2004  Goal is adoption of the airshed plan by the end of 2004

Summary  The Quesnel Air Quality Roundtable has developed an improvement plan for air quality for the City of Quesnel  This is a voluntary, multi- stakeholder, community driven process that has achieved this by consensus  The airshed plan is based on a thorough 3-year scientific study of air quality  Airshed planning is linked to other community initiatives

Community Energy Planning  The City of Quesnel has been actively exploring other environmental sustainability initiatives  The City of Quesnel Community Energy Planning Options Report was completed in August, 2003

Airshed Management Planning in the Cariboo Questions and Discussion Andy Motherwell Director, Area B Cariboo Regional District

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