news // no. 4 theotherpress.ca City of Vancouver passes climate action plan e action planapproved ate action planapproved nate action planapproved limate action Planapproved climate action planapproved climate action fllgyet a ee climate action p anapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action plan approved Cc ities action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapproved climate action planapprove * ‘imate action planapproy~- climate actior cl’ ac te a " i apph_/ Y 1approved anapproved planappvroved or- ‘roved ».roved proved lapproved planapproved .vulon planapprove “mate action planappro mate action planapp! nate action planap imate action plan, climate action plz climate action f climate actia: climate a climate clima clin cl Uy Illustration by Anastasia Simonovich » Controversial plan to be implemented as soon as next year Jessica Berget Assistant Editor ith the goal of helping Vancouver in becoming the greenest city in the world, on November 17, the Vancouver city council has approved the Climate Emergency Action Plan (CEAP). Some aspects of the plan may come into effect as early as 2021 or as late as five years from now. The full action plan lists 32 climate-based policies costing around $500 million. Some aspects of this plan could see an increase of the money spent on cars including entering the city’s downtown core, residential street parking, and taxing based on age, mileage, and carbon usage of the car. Among these actions include implementing “mobility pricing” which includes the decision to instate road tolls, ora levy for all cars entering the city, a congestion charge, and a mandatory parking permits for residential streets. It also looks to expand Vancouver's public transportation system as well as walking and bicycling paths in order to curb people from relying on private transport or encouraging people to purchase electric vehicles. Arguments against these parts of the action plan say they hit car owners where it hurts the most—their wallets. According to News 1130, Canadians already spend thousands on their car every year—about $5000 for leasers and financers and about $1500 for insurance and $800 covering maintenance charges. In the same article, it claims that in a survey they conducted in February with more than 2000 respondents, about 84 percent of Canadians own. a car, with 37 percent owning more than one. Furthermore, in an Angus Reid poll, nearly 80 percent of Canadians said they couldn't live without their car, even though 45 percent think it’s too expensive—especially in BC. This may hit close to home for many students as 64 percent of Canadians ages 18 to 34 own a vehicle, according to another Angus Reid poll. The people backing this plan say that these actions will make Vancouver the greenest city in the world, others however, are more critical. For instance, many say that these plans only serve to punish car owners—especially those in the middle-to-low income bracket who rely on private transportation—and only makes living in the city more expensive. One of those critics is Kris Sims, BC director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation who says people are already struggling to make ends meet. “This is a slap in the face to the small businesses and the hardworking people of Vancouver from their elected officials at city hall and the last thing they need is over-paid bureaucrats dreaming up expensive new driving taxes,’ he said in an article by CTV News. According to the Daily Hive, in 2019, parking permits brought in more than $1.2 million in revenue for the federal government. Making parking permits a city-wide necessity is projected increase this revenue to another $1 million to $2 million annually at the start and increase to $15 million a year after three years. Vancouver proposes decriminalizing illicit drug possession » Mayor Kennedy Stewart takes motion to city council November 24 Jessica Berget Assistant Editor B* this time tomorrow, a motion will be set forth to the city council for Vancouver to decriminalize all simple drug possession. Vancouver mayor Kennedy Stewart announced this as a possibility on November 19 and if the motion goes through, the city of Vancouver will be the first district in Canada to do this. This follows after across the border; Oregon became the first US state to decriminalize drug possession on November 4. Mayor Kennedy say this move is an “urgent and necessary next step” in response to the increase of overdose related deaths in the city this year which he says would allow the city to embrace a health- focused approach to drug use. “Personal possession and use of drugs is not a criminal justice issue, it’s a health issue,” said Stewart in a CBC article. “It is time to end the stigma around substance abuse, help connect more of our neighbours to health care, and save lives.” In 2016, BC declared the amount of overdose related deaths a public health emergency. Since then, there have been more than 18,500 deaths with over 6000 in BC and 1500 in Vancouver. So far this year (the first nine months) the province's illicit drugs toxicity death toll was past 1200, compared to the 983 deaths in 2019. This makes 2020 the third deadliest year for drug overdoses behind 2017 and 2018. At the time of writing this, there have been 331 COVID-19 related deaths in BC. “We all know that the overdose crisis is getting worse, it’s been impacted by COVID and the level of deaths is intolerable,” said mayor Stewart in a Globe and Mail interview. “This can help to reduce stigma and connect folks with health care.” Chief medical officer of Vancouver, Patricia Daly, says in an article for the CBC that there is a big difference between those dying of COVID and drug overdoses. “The difference is that those [dying from overdoses] are younger on average, and go percent are in the prime of their lives between 19 and 59 years of age.” The motion set forth would see people with simple drug possession avoid criminal charges and direct the city to be exempt from federal drug charges according to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. As the act currently stands, the Minister of Health can exempt anyone under the act if the opinion of the minister states that such exemption is necessary “for a medical or scientific purpose or is otherwise in the public interest.” This exemption has allowed the use of supervised drug use sites and research involving these controlled substances. The manufacturing and distributing of these drugs, however, remains illegal.