An exciting exploration of the positive and negatives of hosting an Olympic Games in terms of environmetal, economic and sociocultural impacts on Canadians.
9. Clear-cutting
Between 89 and 126 thousand
trees were taken down to clear
space for the Whistler Olympic
Centre alone
260 Hectares of prime bear
habitat destroyed
Unprecedented # of black
bears hit by cars in 2007
Bear/human interactions on the
rise
11. Concrete – 80% gravel and sand
Whistler Sliding Center – 350,000 tonnes
concrete
Asphalt – 90% gravel and sand
Airport transit way – requires 400,000
tonnes gravel and sand
12. Fraser River – endangered river
since ‟93
Scalping of sand bars (and the
construction of roads that goes
along with it) resulted in the death
of millions of young salmon in
2006
70-93% drop in local salmon
stocks
documented by the David Suzuki
Foundation since „90
13. VANOC‟s strategy is to be Carbon neutral
define their carbon footprint, minimize
emissions and offset the unavoidable
Use of generators during generators has
been limited to 10% of previous Games‟
emissions
No parking at most venues
Admission tickets will include mass transit
50% of VANOC‟s fleet of 96 vehicles are
hybrids or fuel-efficient models
14. Olympic Winter Games use
considerable energy to heat building,
make snow, freeze ice sheets and
sliding tracks, run power equipment
and transport people and goods.
These actions all generate greenhouse
gas emissions.
And… VANOC‟s plan only takes into
consideration their emissions, what about the
expected 250,000 visitors and increased
activity for years to come?
15.
16. “There is an infrastructure being created
for 2010 that will result in the further
destruction of mountains and valleys
that are traditionally Salish, St‟at‟ime,
and Squamish territory. They are
creating infrastructure to attract
corporate businesses and large real
estate operations. The Olympics have
brought a destruction of the natural
world and a dehumanization of the
people.”
17. Developments on Native-
claimed Lands…
Sun Peaks $294 Million, Melvin Creek
$530,000,000, Mt. Cheam, Merritt,
Valemount, Revelstoke, Blue River,
Invermere $450,000,000, Kelowna, Big
White and Crystal Mountain $100,000,000
18. Residents of Eagleridge Bluffs protested
against the expansion of the Sea-to-Sky
Highway; the only transit link from
Vancouver to Whistler.
The government opted to shave $40 million
off of the $600 million price tag of the
project by opting not to tunnel (which would
have avoided several vulnerable
ecosystems).
23. Windmill outside of Beijing powered the Olympic
Green
Wind farm inside Beijing was built and provided
20% of the Olympic facilities power
Provide 100 000 houses with energy
24. Showers in Olympic Village
Lighting for Olympic lawn, road lamps and lights in
public washrooms
85% of all lights for Olympic Venues
25. New solar technology
Takes sun‟s energy and produces both heat and
electricity from the same surface area
Maximizes CO2 displacement
LEED standards
26. National Aquatic Centre
Thermal Layer on outside
Outer walls and roof collect/recycle up to
140 000 tons of water per year