Category Archives: Waste

Communications, Housing, Indigenous Nations, Waste, Water

Mawhinney reviews 2023 in Area C and looks ahead to 2024

Editor’s note: Some activities that are of interest to Cortes listeners as well are: the fact the proposed SRD housing service is designed to be virtually cost neutral to the electorate and how Quadra ICAN is mapping that island’s aquifers and wetlands, as well as monitoring water levels in a number of wells. 

Robyn Mawhinney has learned a lot since she was elected Regional Director almost 14 months ago. As we enter into yet another new year, she gave her reflections of 2023 and what is ahead for Area C in the coming months.

“I’m really pleased that there are new avenues for having community voices heard and included in decision making,” she began.

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Clothing, Waste

A regional model: free stores and other waste reducing facilities

At a time when the average Canadian spends more than $3,000 a year on clothing, many Cortes Island residents are satisying their personal needs and disposing of clothing through the local freestore. Similarly, Creative Deconstruction has supplied materials used in ten new homes on Cortes Island. Mark Vonesch, the Regional Director for Cortes Island, suggests that centres like this may offer a model that needs to be promoted throughout the Comox and Strathcona Regional Districts. 

“I’m just getting back from the Comox Strathcona Waste Management Board meeting. This is a board that I sit on as a director, and we provide guidance and leadership to the waste management services in the Comox Valley District and the Strathcona Regional Districts,” he explained. 

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Food, Waste

The Bokashi Method: A more efficient way to compost

Nick Kiss was involved in Metro Vancouver’s waste industry for 14 years prior to starting Bokashi Living in 2013. 

“I was part of the change and the effort that Metro Vancouver was implementing in trying to create diversion strategies for the waste stream,” he explained.

He and his wife have been visiting Cortes Island every summer for years and now hope to find a home here. In this morning’s interview NIck explains why he believes in the Bokashi method of composting. 

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Waste

2023 Cortes Island Beach Clean-up

Eleven volunteers turned out for the Friends of Cortes Island (FOCI) annual Beach-Clean-up on Saturday, June 17. 

“Most of what we collected today is styrofoam, which is used for floats. That’s obviously washed up on the beach, which is great to get off because it breaks up. We got a whole truckload full of styrofoam. We’ve also picked up a lot of the little black plastic trays they use on the oyster farms, tires with styrofoam in them, a few buoys and then just some sort of trash, but mainly styrofoam,” explained Helen Hall, Executive Director of FOCI

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Rivers & Oceans, Waste

Quadra Island’s ‘Dream Team Beach Clean-up’

Quadra Island’s 3-month-long beach clean-up finished over the weekend.

“Once a week, usually on Wednesdays, we would go on a remote beach hike,  to different areas on Quadra that were hard to access.  We had to go hiking for maybe an hour or so to some of these places and then collect and leave debris, and then we’d have to return by boat another day,” explained Nevil Hand, who organized the campaign.

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