While the world’s attention is focused on what may likely be among the most contentious of the Olympic Games in history — the Beijing Games scheduled to begin this August — Vancouver, B.C., and environs are making a different sort of history as they prepare for the 2010 Winter Games.
“Sport” and “Culture” have been the traditional pillars of the Olympic Games. But at the 1994 Centennial Olympic Congress, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) created a third pillar — “Environment” — and established a Sport and Environment Commission. In 1999, the IOC adopted its own version of the United Nations’ Agenda 21 for Sustainable Development — Sport for Sustainable Development. The IOC outlined a plan of action for using sport to advance sustainable development and, to help implement it, the IOC established a formal collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme.
The Vancouver Olympics aim to be the greenest Games in history. “Sustainability” is the buzzword during preparation for the 2010 Games, from reusable rainwater at the speed skating venue to green roofs and habitat corridors at the Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Village. The refrigeration plan at the Whistler Sliding Centre will transfer the waste heat generated in the cooling process to other buildings on site. Wood waste from construction of the Whistler Nordic Competition Venue has been converted to compost and placed on disturbed soil sites to facilitate the re-growth of vegetation.
The Vancouver Olympic Committee’s (VANOC) Vancouver headquarters received Gold certification within the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. Half of VANOC’s transportation fleet is comprised of hybrids and other fuel-efficient vehicles.
In addition, BC Hydro will provide hydroelectric power for the Games. As a result, these Games will have the lowest-ever carbon dioxide emissions from power generation of any past Winter Olympics; the Vancouver Games will generate less than 10% of the emissions of previous Winter Games, which relied on diesel power.
To minimize construction impacts and maintain the health of natural areas at venue sites, VANOC has been focusing on efficient use of existing venues. The Whistler Sliding Centre, where the bobsled, luge and skeleton events will take place, was sited on Blackcomb Mountain at the existing Whistler ski resort in an area requiring minimal vegetation clearing. Whistler Mountain will be the site of Alpine skiing and will feature such improvements as contoured and reshaped runs, where the downhill courses will be set, and enhancements to the existing snowmaking system.
While skiing in Whistler this past April, we noticed increased snow-making on the lower slopes, plus the new-and-improved run that will host the men’s downhill. The run, called the Dave Murray Downhill, is accessible for viewing from a green (beginner) run and we were able to watch an international junior race with our group of novice and advanced skiers alike.
The build-up in Whistler is palpable, with signs posted everywhere proclaiming this or that venue is the future site of the 2010 Games. Business owners look forward to the increased revenues and many condominiums and hotels are already booked during the Games.
Rates for accommodations are expected to rise significantly. For example, a two-bedroom/one-bath ski-in, ski-out condominium with a gas fireplace, outdoor pool and hot tub is $275 (Canadian) per night beginning on February 12, 2009 (based on a five-night stay), but jumps up to $700 per night beginning February 12, 2010 (not exactly a sustainable increase for our family).
In Vancouver, General Motors Place, home to the National Hockey League Vancouver Canucks, will host the men’s and women’s ice hockey tournaments. But for the existing arena to be used, games will be played on North American-sized ice, rather than the larger international-sized surfaces.
The Pacific Coliseum will be home to figure skating and short-track speed skating. The building’s upgrades include new seats and an expansion of the ice surface to international size.
The Opening and Closing ceremonies, as well as nightly medal ceremonies, will take place in Vancouver’s BC Place Stadium.
One of Vancouver’s local ski areas, Cypress Mountain, will host the freestyle skiing and snowboarding events. Improvements to the area include modifications to existing runs, a new super half-pipe, expanded snowmaking and lighting. To save 12 “locally significant” plant species from demolition at the Cypress site, the plants were removed and replanted elsewhere, out of harm’s way.
New construction for the Games will have life after the Games. The Olympic and Paralympic Village in Vancouver will become a sustainable community with market-rate and affordable housing, parks, and office and retail space. The Whistler Olympic Village will provide much-needed affordable housing for local residents and housing and commercial space for the Squamish and Lil’wat First Nations communities.
A new road also is in the works. In preparation for the increased traffic between Vancouver and Whistler during the Games, construction is in high gear along the scenic Sea-to-Sky Highway. The road, said to be one of the most dangerous in British Columbia, winds along sheer rock faces above Howe Sound before it ascends into the Coast Range.
The improvement project is bound to be one of the most ambitious engineering projects in B.C.’s history. Scheduled activities include widening the road by blasting through solid rock and adding passing lanes in areas where there is nothing but water below.
For the past two years, we have experienced delays on the Sea-to-Sky, the most pronounced happening this year; however, it is clear that the highway in its pre-expansion state would have been hard-pressed to accommodate the projected increase in traffic during the Olympics and that the new sections of highway are quite luxurious.
Like the Olympics, the road construction project aspires to green-ness. Mobile crushers in work zones convert removed rock into rock fill on site, which results in fewer truck trips to haul rock away and haul gravel back. This translates into lower fuel consumption, less dust and reduced emissions. Portable concrete plants on site yield the same results. And, concrete box culverts are being installed to improve fish passage to streams and other waterways.
Historically, the Olympic Games have left structural improvements for many of its host cities, such as new stadiums, athletic facilities and housing. VANOC hopes its Games will leave an additional legacy of environmental stewardship. Organizers have three goals in mind: raising awareness, providing knowledge and promoting opportunities for sustainable action — and hope to break new ground by “inspiring the lives and spirit of all those touched by our Games.”
Maura Kelley Deering is a solo practitioner in Seattle focusing on environmental law, land use and real estate law. She can be reached at 206-679-8486 or through her Web site, www.raining.us/attorney.htm.
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