New organic waste projects in Lumby and Vernon will help decrease greenhouse gas emissions in the North Okanagan, says Vernon-Monashee’s MLA.
Harwinder Sandhu says the projects will also create jobs and produce compost for residents to use.
“Everyone in our province can take actions to reduce their carbon footprint and help tackle climate change,” Sandhu said in a press release Friday, Dec. 3. “In Lumby and Vernon, this will now be even easier. By collecting and processing food waste, we can collectively reduce our emissions and have more locally-available compost for our farmers and our own gardens.”
The new projects are part of the provincial government’s CleanBC Organic Infrastructure and Collection Program. Lumby will receive $17,144 for a food waste collection program serving 750 residential homes. In Vernon, $936,720 from the province will see food and yard waste collected from more than 14,000 residential homes.
Launched in 2020, the program is providing up to $25.9 million over three years to communities to develop or expand their ability to divert organic waste from landfills. Through cost-sharing arrangements, the funding recipients are contributing at least one-third of eligible project costs.
CleanBC supports the provincial government’s commitment to climate action to meet B.C.’s emission targets.
Diverting organic waste from the landfill is one of the City of Vernon’s goals in its Climate Action Plan, which states that seven per cent of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions come from organic waste.
The cost of the Vernon project is estimated at $1.46 million, while the project in Lumby will cost an estimated $33,216.
Other municipalities and jurisdictions receiving funding for similar projects include Kamloops, Summerland, Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen and Oliver. For the full list of projects, click here.
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