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B.C. Air Quality

B.C.'s Plans for Improving Air Quality

B.C. Government Initiatives

The B.C. government is committed to protecting the health of British Columbians, communities and the environment. Taking action to reduce air pollution will help improve the health of the province’s citizens, address the government’s air quality targets, preserve our environment and enhance our economic competitiveness.

The government has developed the B.C. Air Action Plan, which allocates $28.5 million over three years to improve and enhance air quality across the province and protect British Columbians' health. The three-year plan focuses on clean transportation, clean industry and clean communities. Some of the actions have already been started, and all are expected to be in place by 2009. Highlights include:

Clean Transportation
  • legislation that sets strict tailpipe-emission standards for all new, light-duty vehicles sold in the province: the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Vehicle Emissions Standards) Act;
    (Note: These standards are targeted at reducing carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles by 30 percent, to address climate change. They will also help reduce air pollutants from fossil fuel combustion — key sources of particulate matter — and VOCs and NOx, the gases that form ground-level ozone.)
  • cleaning up emissions from transit and school buses (see Diesel School Bus Retrofit Program);
  • retrofitting older heavy-duty diesel vehicles;
  • reducing idling through the Provincial Idle-Reduction Initiative;
  • greening B.C.’s vehicle fleet by supporting Green Fleets BC and enhancing effective programs such as the Scrap-It Program and Air Care ON-ROAD; and
  • supporting greener ports and marine vessels, through the Green Ports and Marine Vessels Emissions Reduction Project.

Clean Industry

  • eliminating beehive burners;
  • turning more wood waste into energy;
  • working with the bioenergy industry and others to develop new fine particulate standards for industrial boilers; and
  • encouraging companies to use the cleanest available technologies.

Clean Communities

  • taking an active role in airshed planning;
  • supporting people to replace old wood stoves with cleaner alternatives;
  • implementing a provincial smoke-management plan; and
  • supporting research on air quality and health.

The 28 actions outlined in the Air Action Plan complement the work underway across B.C. to improve air quality, enhance public transit, address climate change, protect our water and make our province electricity self-sufficient by 2010.

In addition, the B.C. Government is carrying out the following efforts, which support the B.C. Air Action Plan:

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LiveSmart BC
This major program encourages individuals and communities to make more energy-efficient choices for their homes, businesses and vehicles. LiveSmart is aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Since GHGs and air pollutants share common sources, LiveSmart actions will help improve air quality as well.

ActNow
The Air Action Plan is also supported by initiatives such as ActNow, which encourages healthy lifestyle choices such as "green" transportation (e.g., walking and cycling).

BC Scrap-It Program
The Province is enhancing and expanding the Scrap-It Program across British Columbia, providing strong incentives to take old, polluting vehicles off the road.

Canada-wide Standards for Particulate Matter and Ozone
The Canada-wide Standards for Particulate Matter (PM) and Ozone (June 2000) are an important step towards minimizing the risk particulate matter and ozone pose to human health and the environment. See the B.C. and national reports on the progress towards achieving these standards by 2010:

New Ambient Air Quality Criteria for PM2.5
New ambient air quality criteria for PM2.5 have been adopted by the Province of British Columbia. The new criteria, which include 24-hour and annual air quality objectives, will be used to guide air-management decisions on a day-to-day basis.

They will be used to report on the state of the atmospheric environment, develop and institute episode-management strategies (e.g., air quality advisories) and establish approval conditions for permitting new or modified sources. Other air-management applications include:

  • assessing compliance for permitted sources;
  • developing long-term air-management strategies and evaluate progress; and
  • informing regulatory development.

For more details, see New Ambient Air Quality Criteria for PM2.5 and New Ambient Air Quality Criteria for PM2.5: Development Process.

Air Quality Legislation
The provincial government is also addressing air pollution through legislation, codes of practice, permits and standards.

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Municipal Activities

Local and regional governments have the authority to pass bylaws to control emissions from many nonpoint sources, such as backyard burning and residential wood burning. See Inventory of Air Quality Bylaws in British Columbia for: Anti-Idling, Open Burning, and Wood-Burning-Appliances (PDF: 1.6 MB/197 pages).

Municipalities also have authority over activities that may give rise to emissions, such as transportation and land-use planning, regional growth strategies and sustainability plans.

Metro Vancouver plays a critical part in air quality management in British Columbia. The Province has delegated Metro Vancouver planning and permitting/enforcement powers, under the Environmental Management Act.

Metro Vancouver has used its authority under the act, through regional bylaws, to develop emission-reduction requirements and standards for industrial, commercial and institutional types of emission sources. It has also adopted a formal air-quality-management plan, with specific goals, timelines, and emission-reduction measures to meet the goals. Visit Metro Vancouver's air quality site to learn more.

Federal Initiatives

The Government of Canada is working on many fronts to improve air quality. Partnerships are crucial to getting the job done — with the provincial and territorial governments, as well as local governments, industry and nongovernmental organizations. See Federal Government Actions on Clean Air (Environment Canada).

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