New Westminster installs new connection » BridgeNet, an improved broadband, is coming soon to the community Mercedes Deutscher News Editor Si news@theotherpress.ca he city of New Westminster has started construction on a new high-speed fibre-optic network by the name of BridgeNet. BridgeNet, upon the first stages of its completion in summer 2016, will connect different commercial zones together. Sapperton, uptown, and downtown are slated to be connected to the new network first, while the west side and Queensborough are expected to join the network in 2017. The new network is expected to have positive impacts on the New Westminster economy and employment, particularly in the knowledge sector. It will also create some non-taxable revenue sources, which would contribute to the city budget. Businesses will be able to subscribe to the network, which will be available at a price competitive to that of other networks. There will also be the option to bundle BridgeNet with another telecommunication internet service provider. If the results of BridgeNet : go as planned, New Westminster : : will be better equipped to : attract new businesses in : commercial centres of the city. In addition to commercial : development, the new network : will supposedly increase the : city’s status as a health hub, : bringing on new investments : within and around Royal : Columbian Hospital. Educational institutes : around the city will also be : positively impacted by the : network. Douglas College’s : New Westminster campus : will receive access to the : network, along with the Justice : Institute of BC and the New : Westminster School District. New Westminster Mayor : Jonathan Cote views BridgeNet : as an opportunity to reshape : how the city contributes to : the metro economy. While : New Westminster has : traditionally contributed : through the use of industry : and warehouse, the new : broadband will allow the city : to expand into new horizons. “We feel this is New Westminster’s opportunity : to reposition ourselves to : make sure we continue to be : a player in Metro Vancouver’s : growing economy,” Cote told W SOOT TTT TCO SAD eNO : the New Westminster Record. Alvin Chok, the chief : information officer for the : city, adds on to Cote, telling : the Record: “It influences the : economic development, the : investors, the people who want : to come and live and work here. : The younger generation wants : to have high-speed Internet : access anywhere in the city.” The network idea first : began to gain traction as : part of the Intelligent City > Plan, which has been under : development for the past : several years. The Intelligent : City Plan continues on the : hopes the New Westminster : will become less industrial : and further geared towards : innovation and marketing. BridgeNet is expected to cost $5.5 million overall, ul wills mn ramiaianiert 4 WEEE UNDUE Ten i Image via thinkstock : yet is expected to gain a return of $16.8 million over the next 30 years. “We are already getting people knocking on our door : wanting to hook up,” said City Counsellor Bill Harper to the Record. “I think it’s a good brand. ... BridgeNet is really clear. We are a bridge to the future and it’s all about the Internet.” Not enough water to last a lifetime? » New study led by a British Columbia scientist reveals Earth’s hidden groundwater Aaron Guillen Staff Reoorter M2. Metro Vancouver residents, probably haven't taken a second thought about the clean water that is readily available to them. Yet for millions around the world, finding a clean resource of refreshing H20 is harder than one would expect— and it’s rapidly becoming a bigger problem. Over the past few years, scientists have speculated about the world’s water resources in a renewable matter. Time after time, they've never been able to come to conclusive estimates as to the size of the volume available. According to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Water Science School, the vast majority of water on the Earth’s surface at 96 per cent is the saline, or salt water, found in the oceans. The freshwater resources, such as groundwater and the rainwater that moves into rivers and lakes, provide people with the water they need every day to survive. Water sitting on the surface : of the Earth is easy to visualize. : However, the water below the : surface is extremely important : to life, and there is much more : freshwater stored in the ground : than there is in on the surface. Recently, Tom Gleeson : of the University of Victoria, : alongside an international group : : of hydrologists, has produced the : : first data-based estimate for the: : Earth’s groundwater volume. The : study found that water around : the world is being used up way : too quickly. When the Globe and Mail : questioned Gleeson on why : groundwater was so important, : he replied: “The simplest answer : : is because over a third of humans : : drink groundwater every day, : : and we use it for irrigated : agriculture around the world. : It’s a hugely important, critical : resource for both drinking water : and for growing food.” Their most significant : finding was that reportedly less : than six per cent of groundwater : globally is renewable over : the average human lifespan. : Interestingly enough, the : sheer amount of groundwater : available, while not so renewable, : is significantly bigger than the : current volume of fresh water. Measuring in at three times : bigger, groundwater around : the world is quickly becoming : a coveted resource that is : running out at the same pace. : When taking a closer look, : scientists have learnt that there’s : a difference between young : and old groundwater. Young : groundwater, usually less than : 50 years old and found closer : to the surface, is the one in : grave danger. Compared to old : groundwater, it’s more useful : and easily accessible. If no : affirmative action takes place, : young groundwater can become : contaminated. Researchers hope : : to make a change in everyone's : outlook on water. “B.C. has just recently Image via www.savegreek water.org : passed a new Water : Sustainability Act, which for : the first time really regulates : groundwater use in this : province,” says Gleeson to the : Globe and Mail. “T hope it’s a call anda : reminder that our young and active groundwater is a finite : resource that needs to be : managed and protected into the : future.”