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VOL. 25, NO. 78
Waste-to-energy facility partners fire up public outreach campaign By TaMara CunninGhaM THE NEwS BULLETiN
CHRIS BUSH/THe NewS BUlleTIN
Suzanne Samborski is moving into a new stage in her career with the City of Nanaimo as the new head of the city’s first ever Culture and Heritage department.
Cultural plan priority for department
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City Hall shuffle sees arts and culture grouped with heritage sector. By TaMara CunninGhaM THE NEwS BULLETiN
Taking action on Nanaimo’s culture plan is top of the list for Nanaimo’s first independent culture and heritage team. A four-person culture and heritage department will kick off its two-year term this January with an aim to zero in on the city’s budding cultural
plan. It will be the first time culture has broken away from parks and recreation and merged with heritage – a move orchestrated by top bureaucrat Ted Swabey in a major shake up earlier this year. According to city officials, the change recognizes the growing importance of arts and culture to the community and the need to prioritize efforts to build on its momentum. The sector alone generates more than $150 million in economic activity and upwards of 1,300 jobs. By bringing together culture and heritage, the hope is the city will not
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only build relationships and leverage knowledge in the arts, heritage and culture community, but focus in on a cultural strategy that would have otherwise been addressed from the corner of desks in “little bits and pieces,” said Suzanne Samborski, the head of the new division. The creation of a new department isn’t expected to come without challenges, including potential debate around culture priorities for the next 24 months. But the team is excited to get started on the new tasks ahead, said Samborski. u See ‘CITY’ /4
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Proponents of a potential waste-to-energy incinerator at Nanaimo’s Duke Point will fire up a major public outreach campaign this January. Representatives with Wheelabrator Technologies, Urbaser and Seaspan announced last week they’re set to launch an intense public education campaign on a proposed wasteto-energy facility, from stakeholder presentations to building tours and a new website. It’s all aimed at sharing their side of the story on waste-to-energy technology, which they claim is “more than safe enough” and environmentally sound. The project, proposed during Metro Vancouver’s site selection process, sparked concerns from residents and politicians about smell, pollution and possible health issues. The proponents have been urging Nanaimo to keep its door open to the concept, and thanks to a City of Nanaimo decision to do just that, they say they are ready to address concerns and help people make an informed decision on the proposed project. Metro Vancouver announced the city as a possible contender for a waste-to-energy facility and has given the companies consent to do public outreach. “It’s exciting and we are kind of looking forward to this,” said Mark Swartz of Wheelabrator. “It’s an uphill road for us on projects like this, but I have been doing this job for 26 years ... and I have no problem looking in the mirror as a committed environmentalist and knowing how good these projects are overall.” The outreach will include information from international studies, but proponents say it’s too early to do any local health, economic or environmental analysis. Carla Stein, spokeswoman for Sierra Club’s Nanaimo chapter, questions a campaign without local data. When proponents say information campaign, “I am hearing propaganda,” she said. The club will launch its own campaign. The proponents’ website goes online in midJanuary. news@nanaimobulletin.com
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