The Daily Voice • April 5, 2022 • Volume 55 • Issue 8

BUSINESS

Labour shortage

Tourists are coming back to Vancouver, but the industry has insufficient workers. P3

202 N

Nostalgia on film The next generation of photographers is looking to the past for inspiration. P4

ONLINE SPECIAL

Illicit cannabis

Black market pot is still for sale in B.C., despite legalization. langaravoice.ca

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ARTS & LIFE

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'Just writing and crying'

APRIL 5, 2022 • VOL. 55 NO. 8 • VANCOUVER, B.C.

Many Ukrainian students struggle with school during strife  By JORDAN COPP

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krainian students in Vancouver are finding it difficult to focus on the end of the semester while the war in their home country rages on for the seventh straight week.

“I've been crying for 24 hours all day long, and I had assignment yesterday,” said Daryna Kulyk, a Ukrainian student studying psychology at Langara College. “So, I was just, you know, writing and crying.”

Kulyk, who says reading accounts of the civilians allegedly executed has been excruciating, is grateful for the support and community of her classmates and instructors.

“My classmates, they're very understanding, like, I had several group projects and they all back me up and helped in any way possible.

I'm really grateful for this support.”

Many have family living in Ukraine. Trying to keep in touch with loved ones often takes priority.

“It was very hard for me to concentrate on my exams because I was always thinking about my family and friends, if they are safe. I called them every day to check where they are, and how they are doing,” said Sasha Szytchenko, a Langara student.

According to the college’s website, there are currently 12 international students from Ukraine studying at Langara.

Gregory Pokorny, the manager of international marketing and recruitment at Langara’s international student office, said he has been getting more inquiries from displaced Ukrainian students and some still in Ukraine.

Pokorny said although nothing has been implemented yet, Langara is exploring options to provide financial aid to Ukrainian students in need.

See langaravoice.ca for full story

A TransLink customer uses a Compass card vending machine, paying by credit card. LAUREN ACCILI PHOTO

TransLink users fear scam Banking card PINs at risk on Canada Line vending machines loading their Compass cards.

Amanda Steed, media relations kyTrain rider Matthew officer for Metro Vancouver transit Rafael had no idea that police, said that skimming is relascammers could get banktively rare at transit stations and does ing information through a not significantly affect ridership.

Compass card vending machine.

“It's quite common among many Rafael was waiting for other retailers all over the the YVR Airport train world. But for us, we've “Now that I'm aware on Monday and did not been pretty fortunate that know that transit police hasn't been something of [skimmers], I mean itthat's are warning riders that happened often for “skimmers” have recently I guess it would make us,” Steed said. accessed user information Skimmers were found me more nervous.” at three train stations. at the Marine Drive, YVR He said he didn’t know Airport and Vancouver — MATTHEW RAFAEL what skimming was and City Centre train stations TRANSLINK RIDER that he uses cash most of in late March.

LAUREN ACCILI PHOTO the time, but he plans to Steed said that in take more precautions. addition to daily servic“Now that I’m aware of it, I mean “I think there is not enough surveil- ing of the Compass card vending I guess it would make me more lance here in the SkyTrain,” Cueva machines, alarms that go off when nervous,” Rafael said. said. “I’m going to be more careful, the card machine is tampered with Skimming is the act of stealing definitely.” and there are cameras monitoring one’s financial information such as Tenzin Kuenseng was waiting the machines. a card PIN at an ATM. An illegal at Marine Drive station with her “So as part of our police investicard reading device is installed in friends. “That makes us worried,” gation, from a transit perspective, the banking machine and can record Kuenseng said. they have taken a lot of steps with user-entered PINs. Customers can Transit police advise all transit the technician and then the alarm be at risk because skimmers are diffi- users to be alert for skimmers while and monitoring system and all that,”

 By LAUREN ACCILI

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cult to recognize.

Of the six transit users interviewed on Monday by the Voice, none were aware of this issue and had not heard of skimming.

Lorena Cueva was waiting for the Waterfront train on her way to work.

Steed said.

She said machines with skimmers will look different than a normal machine.

“Some of the things you want to look for are like pieces of tape, like sometimes what they do is tape the device on with packing tape or electrical tape,” Steed said.

“Sometimes you'll see tape sort of rolling up in the Amanda Steed corners, or someMEDIA RELATIONS, METRO VANCOUVER thing that just TRANSIT POLICE doesn't look like it belongs in the machine.”

Steed advised the public to be wary and remain on the lookout for skimmers.

“What we do ask people is that if they come across something like this, or something looks suspicious on a ticket vending machine when they're purchasing a ticket, is to notify a SkyTrain attendant or Canada Line attendant.”

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Atlarge

THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITOR HOLLIE MCGOWAN

Small shops feel parking relief

Beleaguered downtown Kelowna merchants seeking post-pandemic help boost and encourage people to come downtown and support local busiusinesses in downtown nesses,” said Coun. Charlie Hodge.

Kelowna are hoping the “I mean it’s something small we city’s offer of two days of can do to help out.” free parking this year will The event has been successful in help bring customers back after the previous years with participating tough months of the pandemic. shops having special one day sales The Downtown Kelowna Associ- and prize-draws for customers who ation made a request to city council make purchases at participating to waive downtown on-street park- businesses. ing fees for the association’s Small With more people downtown not Shop Saturday event that will be only are small shops benefiting, but taking place on two Saturdays, April so are the restaurants, distilleries, 9 and Sept 24. salons and other services.

Small Shop Saturday has been “It creates more traffic of people held in previous years downtown, walking around using all of the city and council has approved free streets and then maybe they’ll go out on-street parking for it before, but for lunch or stop for a cocktail or the event has not been held for a few go out for dinner later in the day,” years. said Burley.

The event comes at a time when “We’re looking at ways to get traffic built the weather is back up downbeginning to “ We want to support town and after clear up and small busisome brainsmall shops, so that’s nesses are storming with the team here, starting to see the bottom line, but if that’s what we increased sales we can get more people decided to do after a few is to go back slow months. down there by other to Small Shop “It ’s been means as well, certainly like incredSaturday,” said ibly slow, so Mark Burley, that’s important.” anything that Downtown — KELOWNA MAYOR COLIN BASRAN Kelowna Assoattracts people ciation execudowntown, I’m like just tive director.

The pandemic has affected foot super grateful and like appreciative traffic for small businesses down- that their [DKA] doing something,” town. City council decided provid- said Brittney McCormick, owner of ing complementary on-street Hey Ma, a clothing boutique. parking was how the city could help City council is familiar with waivout. ing on-street parking fees during the “It’s just a request was made of busy shopping season, but McCorus, I think, and it’s something we mick said she would like to see free can do. It’s one way to sort of try to parking or other incentives during  By CORVIN VASKI

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Kelowna drivers can look forward to not having to plug the meters downtown for two dates this years as Small Shop Saturday returns after an absence of several years. PHOTO BY TIVADAR VASKI

the offseason.

“It would have been really cool for something to happen in the winter or like in the extremely slow months, like March was really bad for my store,” said McCormick.

When the request was brought up during the March 14 council meeting, council wondered if there would be the possibility of free transit to also be offered on the two Saturday events.

City parking services manager Dave Duncan said at the meeting that city staff have not had enough time to look into free transit and

that it was more of a one-time request.

“We do want to find a different way to deal with these requests in the future because we do realize it is somewhat counterintuitive to what we’re trying to accomplish [environmental goals],” said Duncan at the meeting.

The request was quickly passed by council because of the help it would bring to local businesses in the downtown area.

“The bottom line is we want to support small shops, so that’s the bottom line, but if we can get more

people down there by other means as well, certainly that’s important,” said Mayor Colin Basran at the council meeting.

There might be free transit for future events like Small Shop Saturday, but that is something city staff will look into because the transit system in Kelowna is shared with five other regional partners.

Council’s decision is supported by local business owners.

“I think city council taking the time to highlight us [small businesses] is incredible,” said McCormick.

Much ado over Courtenay's 24-hour loo City's first public washroom a sign of rapid change  By HOLLIE MCGOWAN

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aced with a growing street population buffeted by the pandemic and climate change, Courtenay will make its first public washroom will be available to downtown residents around the clock.

Although concerns had been raised during recent council meetings regarding maintenance and possible drug-related deaths and sexual assault in the “Urbaloo,” city council decided recently that it will be accessible to the public 24 hours a day until Dec. 31. Council also mandated increased cleaning and security checks for the washroom.

The city will now monitor the expanded availability until the end of

The Voice is published by Langara College’s journalism department. Editorial

opinions are those of the staff and independent of the administration.

the year. “That’ll be our pilot phase,” Coun. Doug Hillian said.

The Urbaloo was installed in December at the corner of Sixth Street and England Avenue. A porta-potty structure made of stainless steel with an anti-graffiti coating, it’s the first public washroom for the Vancouver Island community of 26,000 people. It’s one of many initiatives that the city is trying to put in place while facing a rapidly growing population, including an increase in homeless residents, as British Columbians move out of major metropolitan centres and to smaller, rural towns.

Coun. Wendy Morin said the needs of an expanding population, including an increase in unhoused people downtown, were highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is an issue for folks who are unhoused. I mean, COVID was really hard because there was no, there were no places to get water,” Morin said.

Morin says that facilities such

as the Urbaloo and the city’s new concerned that people were using warming and cooling centres are their washrooms for drug usage or becoming crucial to the Courtenay other activities beyond their ability community. to handle.

In recent years, the city has begun “We had one business bathroom to grapple with climate change and that was badly vandalized when how to accommodate the local popu- somebody had a psychotic episode in lation in the face of drastic chal- there,” said Hillian. “And we also had lenges. people using back alleys and busi“Even in ness frontages addition to as their place “You worry about C O V I D , to go to the we’ve had the bathroom.” somebody having an climate-related Not all overdose in the middle downtown challenges like businesses the heat dome of night.” are repor t. . . when you — DOUG HILLIAN, COUN. COURTENAY d o n’t h a v e ing changes in public facilities customer traffor people who need them, whether fic as a result of the Urbaloo, but they it’s washing your hands or going to do see it as a potential benefit. the bathroom or for people who are “If we’re talking about generally unhoused.” street people, we do get a lot hangBusiness owners downtown hope ing around here but not a lot come in the Urbaloo will address the issue of and use the washroom,” said Vivian the growing homeless population.

Dickson, a weekend manager of Hillian says that business owners Edible Island Whole Foods Market. within the downtown sector were “A few did, but now they don’t come

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in at all because that one is there.”

Hillian says that the city was concerned that if someone were using the Urbaloo for drug purposes and suffered an overdose, that no one would be there to help them.

“You worry about somebody having an overdose in the middle of night,” Hillian said. “Somebody assaulting somebody else, somebody sleeping in there.”

The Urbaloo is not meant solely for homeless residents. City councillors say the washroom is for all members of the community.

“A lot of people, like people who work actually, like electricians, or construction, people who are in their cars, and they need to stop or go to the bathroom somewhere,” Morin said. “And they’re not necessarily going in to eat somewhere to use, you know, the restaurant bathroom.”

Hillian is optimistic about the pilot and the Urbaloo’s future.

“I'm very hopeful that we will just affirm that it will be open 24/7 on an ongoing basis,” he said.

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Businessnews

EDITOR CLAIRE WILSON | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | THE VOICE

International students may be the solution Jasleen Kaur, a second-year health sciences student, says that the 20-hour work limit does not provide enough pay for daily living. According to Vancouver MP Jenny Kwan, many international students are willing to work and would benefit from restrictions being lifted. MARILYN REICHERT PHOTO

Changes to 20-hour work limit could solve the labour crisis  By MARILYN REICHERT

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he lifting of COVID-19 restrictions has refocused attention to the ongoing labour shortage in the hospitality and tourism industry.

Some believe that international students have the potential to take on work to fill that shortage but are restricted by federal government work regulations.

Jenny Kwan, NDP member of Parliament for Vancouver East, advocates for the lifting of restrictions on the working hours placed on international student visas.

“It is important for the international students to meet their financial needs while they’re here in Canada, and international students tend to pay a much higher fee in comparison to the domestic students,” Kwan said.

According to Ian Tostenson, president and CEO of the British Columbia Restaurant and Foodservices Association, there is a shortage of 30,000 in the foodservices industry in British Columbia which normally has 190,000 workers. Kwan says that international students studying in Canada could help to fill the gap but are limited to working 20 hours per week on their student visas.

“Since the students are here already, and if they’re ready, willing, and able to work, then I think we should lift those limitations and allow them to work,” Kwan said. “That would not only help the students financially, but it would also help with the worker shortage.”

She said the Canadian government should value the contributions that students have made while studying in Canada.

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Jasleen Kaur, a second-year health sciences student, would like to see changes to the hourly restrictions.

“If we are limited to just 20 hours, our basic needs are not met,” Kaur said. “We find it quite difficult to maintain our stay.”

Because of the labour shortage, Karen Lewis, general manager of Grey Line Westcoast Sightseeing, said that they are rethinking their approach to recruitment as well as revisiting wages.

Lewis believes the labour shortage needs can be met by international students.

“When the cruise ship season starts, we will include them. They’re all very keen and enthusiastic and we appreciate the ones I’ve been able to talk to over the last couple months of learning how tourism works in the city,” she said. “So absolutely, they will be a huge part of our workforce in helping welcome guests back.”

Jobs will also be available in hospitality.

“Because of the effects of the pandemic, we’re also looking for cooks, chefs and servers … what we refer to as front of the house and back to the house,” said Tostenson.

He encourages international students to be a part of meeting the labour shortage.

“You’ll learn great people skills, marketing skills, scheduling skills.

And money is good too,” said Tostenson.

Stacy Chala, communications manager with the Capilano Group, encourages international students to apply for as many jobs as possible, even as a part-time worker.

“It is a super fun industry for people to work in and get to meet people from around the world,” Chala said. “They can showcase why they’re here and why they’re learning and why they’re wanting to be in tourism.”

Campusnews

Paper cups are out, reusable cups are in Tim Hortons now accepts personal mugs as COVID protocols end  By KENNETH WONG

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tarting April 6, guests at Tim Hortons will receive a 10-cent discount on beverages if they bring a cup from home. Select Tim Hortons restaurants will be reintroducing reusable in-restaurant mugs, plates and cutlery to serve customers.

For the first time, guests will also be able to order cold beverages in their reusable cups.

Tim Hortons stopped accepting reusable cups during the COVID-19 pandemic to protect the health and safety of employees and customers.

“I think it’s good, it provides awareness because more students are on a budget so it’s good, but also because of the environment.”

— MAFER GARCIA, LANGARA STUDENT

The classic Tims cup will soon be replaced by reusable mugs that customers bring from home. Students say the move is good for the environment but that the hassle to bring cups to school may not be worth the fuss. KENNETH WONG PHOTO

But the pandemic restrictions created enormous amounts of waste.

In 2019, when the coffee shop franchise allowed customers to use their own cups, it reduced usage of singleuse cups by 15 million.

Many Tim Hortons customers at the Langara cafeteria like the initiative but are unsure how effective this

change will be.

“I think it’s good, it provides awareness because more students are on a budget so it’s good, but also because of the environment,” said Langara student Mafer Garcia.

“There’s more people that are environment conscious and bringing their own mugs but sometimes

you’re in a rush in the morning you just bring your bag and forget about it,” she said.

Langara student Gen Aiba is concerned that students won’t be able to bring their own cups due to limited space in their bags.

“I can’t, I have to save my space for my backpack, it’s also limited it

as well,” Aiba said.

To maintain health and safety standards, Tim Hortons will not be serving guests with cracked or visibly damaged mugs.

Langara student Dhairya Joshi thinks the franchise needs to give more incentive for customers to bring their own cups.

“Maybe they could start a promotion or give out free rewards, like free coffee and stuff, if they’re bringing their own cups,” Joshi said. “Once they start getting rewards [people will bring their own cups], like free coffee, why not?”

Guests will also soon be able to use the company app to order ahead and let the restaurant know they will be bringing their own cup. Team members will prepare their beverage in a clean reusable cup then transfer the contents to the guest’s cup.

“We’ve been looking forward to accepting reusable cups in restaurants again and have been working hard with Tim’s restaurant owners to ensure we do so safely and consistently,” said Paul Yang, senior director of innovation and sustainability for Tim Hortons, in a press release.

An employee of Tim Hortons located at Fraser Street and 43rd Avenue emphasized that hygiene practices remains a top priority for the franchise.

“That’s one thing we’re looking at closely, getting rid of exposure to anything COVID-related,” he said.

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THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITOR LESIA POGORELO

Carbon tax will drive up petrol prices further

Arts&life

Increase will put a heavy toll on students, profs

“The climate crisis is not waiting; it's getting worse,” Harrison said.

“The only way we can protect the future of humanity is to transition away from fossil fuels.”

B.C. started its carbon tax in 2008.

It was the first to introduce such a  By DANIEL JOHNSTON tax in North America.

Cam MacDonald, a biology qn the face of soaring gas instructor at Langara, said the price prices, B.C.’s decision to raise increase translates to around three its carbon tax is still a good one, cents more per litre. MacDonsay experts and drivers. ald, who drives a car to Langara, Nica De Guzman, a student at supports the carbon tax.

Langara College and the only driver “I'm a fan of carbon taxes even in their family, spends $100 a month though I'm a driver and I pay that on gas for their car — after paying extra money,” MacDonald said. “I only $60 a month before the recent think it's an important way to, you price spike, know, incenlargely driven tivize changes “The climate crisis is by the Russian in behavnot waiting; it's getting iours.” i nv a s i on o f Ukraine.

Despite his worse,” Harrison said.

De Guzman enthusiasm, is annoyed.

MacDonald “The only way we can “ I ' m on l y said, three protect the future of part-time cents wouldn’t minimum wage humanity is to transition really change working and to people's away from fossil fuels.” pay for insurpocketbooks ance, too, that dramatically.

— KATHRYN HARRISON, PROFESSOR POLITICAL SCIENCE was also really “But it hard,” said is going De Guzman. to trickle “Sometimes, I just don't want to through other costs,” he said. drive.”

The Canadian Taxpayers FederaDespite the increase in price, De tion has complained that B.C. pays Guzman appreciates the carbon tax, the highest carbon taxes i n which B.C. increased April 1, from North America. $40 to $45 per tonne of carbon. This According to move is part of a provincial plan to shift away from a reliance on fossil fuels. The price will rise by $5 every year. emissions “It's always great to cut down on data released by the carbon emissions.” provincial government Kathryn Harrison, in 2021, emissions have a UBC increased 10 per cent since 2015 political and have gone up in five of the last science seven years. prof.

Bryan Breguet, chair of the says economics department at Langara, said the carbon tax is a function of supply and demand.

“Whenever we increase the price of one tonne of carbon, then the carbon tax will increase and so you pay more, all things being equal,” said Breguet.

B.C.’s government offers a carbon tax rebate, designed to help lowto medium-income families, and adjusted based on income.

Despite the rebate, Harrison said that the carbon tax is still effective in reducing fossil fuel use.

“The way the rebates are designed, B.C.’s carbon tax is an excellent way is that it doesn't undermine the to encourage reduction of emissions, financial incentive to reduce one's and an important fighter of climate fossil fuel use,” Harrison said to the change.

Voice.

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Film enthusiast Dmitri Tcherbadji, takes a reverse selfie with a film camera. LAISA CONDE PHOTO

Print film captures a new audience

Analogue photography attracts young photogs  By LAISA CONDE

A

nalogue film photography is making a comeback as young people are seeking a more thoughtful way to take photos.

Nicole Langdon-Davies, head of the film department at the Fairview camera store Beau Photo, said the younger generation is the reason behind the rise of film photography, particularly due to the nostalgic feeling of the medium.

“They grew up with digital, so it only stands to reason they be fascinated with things that are older,” she said. “The younger people that come into the store, they tell me they like the old look of photos.”

Film photography uses vintage cameras with rolls of film that must developed through a chemical process. Until the advent of digital photography, it was the dominant method of image-taking.

Langdon-Davies said it is harder to maintain older cameras from early 1990s to early 2000s because those electronics are either unfixable or not worth fixing. However, cameras from before the ‘90s are easier to fix when compared to newer ones thanks to their engineering.

“It’s mostly mechanical, so you can find a part. Or hopefully use another part or make a part. 3D

printing has opened up a world of moment they want to capture. making parts for things,” she said.

“It just kind of changes the whole Dmitri Tcherbadji, a New West- way that you approach taking minster web developer who runs photos in and of itself. And that can the film photography blog Analog. be pretty cool as well,” Bowen said.

Cafe, said one reason film photog- “Especially when we’re so used to raphy is trending is that people are just snapping photos kind of almost seeking alternative hobbies and life- mindlessly film, you kind of have to styles that don’t involve a digital life. really think about it.”

“The digital life is kind of overBowen said that while she enjoys taking a lot of our personal space, shooting film, the high price is a you know? If you have a phone barrier. Rolls of colour film cost on on you, it probably records every average $10–$15 and include 24–36 single step that exposures. you make,” he “ W h e n “It just kind of changes said. “The film [my freelance the whole way that you camera doesn’t photography do it. In fact, started approach taking photos work] y o u d o n’t to pick up, I actually even was like, I can’t in and of itself.” have to have keep shooting — SEVERN BOWEN, PHOTOGRAPHY STUDENT your photos film because ever entered I can’t really the digital space, and some people continue to afford this,” she said. appreciate that.”

Even though digital photograTcherbadji said during the phy is more accessible due to phone pandemic, the photography cameras, Bowen said the process of community reinvented itself with developing film, from shooting to cameras made of paper and photog- seeing the photos, is special and raphers developing their own film. more personal.

Severn Bowen, a photography “I can review photos that I’ve student at Langara College, said taken on my phone easily, I can her interest in film photography show you all of them, and I can flip started after her father gave her first through them,” she said. analogue camera when she was 14.

“But with film, you can’t really She said shooting photos with film do that until you go through this cameras makes people slow down process, which I think is cool and and be more thoughtful about the it’s almost ritualistic.”

Sportsnews

EDITOR HOLLIE MCGOWAN | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | THE VOICE

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Canadians cheer for soccer win

Men return to World Cup after 36 years, boosting sport's status in Canada  By JUAN RAMIREZ

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anadian soccer fans hope that Canada’s qualification for the World Cup in Qatar will boost the game in a country traditionally known for hockey.

The Canadian men’s team 4-0 win against Jamaica in Toronto on March 27 secured Canada’s spot in the biggest soccer tournament in the world. After 36 years Canada will

“I feel like everyone's getting behind it and I feel like it's not only good for the sport, but it's a good thing for the country that we've been able to make it this far. ” — MILO LABONTE, ST. REGIS BAR AND GRILL BARTENDER

participate in a men’s FIFA World Cup. The achievement comes less than a year after the women’s soccer team won a gold medal in the Olympics.

Peter Schaad, the marketing and communications officer from the British Columbia Soccer Association, said this is a unique moment

for Canadian soccer.

“There has never been a time ever where women's team has won a gold medal and just a little under a year later, the men have qualified at the top of their CONCACAF group,” said Schaad. “Also never in history will you have a team playing in two World Cups in three and a half years, just given how Qatar was in November, and then the 2026 World Cup will be in the traditional summertime.”

Schaad also hopes that this success would make people see Canada as more than just a hockey country on account of its long soccer history. He anticipates the recent success of the Canadian men’s team will motivate younger generations of Canadian soccer players to excel in the game.

“I just really hope that this inspires both boys and girls to just stay in the game and continue on their pathway,” said Schaad.

Milo Labonté, a bartender in St. Regis Bar and Grill in downtown Vancouver, said that when Canada is playing, there is a special feeling among the patrons.

“I've gotten the pleasure to watch some of the games during work and the atmosphere in the building whenever Canada is playing is electric,” said Labonté. “I feel like everyone's getting behind it and I feel like it's not only good for the sport, but it's a good thing for the country that we've been able to make it this far.”

Patrons relax at the St. Regis Bar and Grill in Vancouver while a game of soccer plays on the televsion in the background. JUAN RAMIREZ: PHOTO

Despite the long time that it took for Canada to be back in a FIFA World Cup, Canadians are responding to the success of their national teams.

Natisha Singh, a SWAP worker at the Langara gym, said she is proud of the recent men’s soccer team achievement.

“I'm very proud as a Canadian

citizen that they made it,” Singh said. “Personally, I watch soccer, but like not the small events as the big events. So, I'll definitely be watching this to see if we can make it further.”

Sciencenews

Vancouver tackles food waste issues

New initiative brings food waste problem to the table  By MICHAEL SU

A

s the City of Vancouver prepares an initiative to reduce food waste, a professor in UBC’s faculty of land and food systems says the city’s goal does not go far enough.

The city is introducing a new system to help the local food industry tackle food price inflation. The Circular Food Innovation Lab will launch on April 27 and will focus on documenting and advising on ways to reduce food waste.

“The act of wasting food isn't considered a moral or ethical dilemma. It is just the cost of business.”

— WILL VALLEY, UBC PROFESSOR OF LAND AND FOOD SYSTEMS

UBC’s Will Valley believes there are much more pressing issues than a management plan.

“The act of wasting food isn’t considered a moral or ethical dilemma,” Valley said. “It is just the

Food waste has become a big issue in Vancouver with the city launching a new initiative to prevent waste. Some people say that more needs to be done. MICHAEL SU PHOTO

cost of business. That’s why when we’re in an industrial capitalist food system we will always have this issue.”

In 2019, the Canadian food industry lost an estimated $39 billion in revenue due to 8.79 million tonnes of avoidable, unplanned food waste, according to the City of Vancouver.

In Vancouver alone, businesses discarded 25,000 tonnes of edible

food that year, an amount equal to 37,000 meals lost.

According to Valley, universal basic income guarantees could be the solution to the food waste problem.

“Imagine a universal basic income where all people, all citizen and residents and those who don’t have that status in Canada, have access to money to adequately buy food with dignity from grocery stores,” Valley

said.

Rethink2gether is a Vancouver-based, food waste consulting company developed to help commercial kitchens reduce food costs and improve their business.

“An average restaurant in B.C. spends around 50 grand a year on food that’s never been eaten,” said Ben Liegey, co-founder of Rethink2gether. “An estimation of how

much you can save is around 30 per cent within the first year, and that is significant.”

Environmental services such as Rethink2gether have already started setting an example as to why food sustainability consultancy is essential.

“The first action you can take on the food business is to track food waste and to really understand what is happening in your operation,” Liegey said.

Karen Lee, director of marketing and communications of UBC faculty of land and food systems, says the city initiative can bring better supplies management into the food industry.

“At a global level, we throw away about one third of all food produced for human consumption, with fresh fruit and vegetables seeing the biggest losses,” Lee stated in an email sent to the Voice.

“It’s an exciting step in starting to address actions that can combat food waste and help increase food security within communities.”

Valley believes that the Circular Food Innovation Lab is done in good faith and the City of Vancouver is recognizing this issue, but municipal governments do not have enough power in the current system to make drastic changes.

“This is an indispensable but insufficient approach to food waste and hunger in our society,” Valley said.

The City of Vancouver did not respond to an interview by deadline.

6

THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITOR CORVIN VASKI

Determined to de-stress  By CORVIN VASKI

D

e-stress Fest is happening at Langara College starting now until April 14 to help students with their stress throughout the exam period. A range of activities and events on campus will be held to help students de-stress. Some of the workshops include a Colouring Lounge in the library, where students can sit down and colour on different printed out templates and

a build-your-own wellness kit where students can pick out the items that can help them get through their exam period, including notebooks and chocolate. Later this week, therapy dogs will be brought to campus and free coffee and snacks are being given out at various times.

These events allow for students to take a break from their classes and studying for exams with the goal of lowering stress levels among students.

Photofeature

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Jessica Moreno sits at the Colouring Lounge in the Library after finishing her classes for the day. LEFT: Anthony Virdo making sure the table is organized and full of supplies for the build-your-own wellness Kits event. BOTTOM-RIGHT: Students lined up assembling wellness kits. BOTTOM LEFT: Langara students join a game together on their phones in the library living room event. PHOTOS BY CORVIN VASKI

Specialinvestigation

EDITOR AMIR KHAN | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | THE VOICE

7

More cyclists, fewer bike thefts Registration reduces stolen bikes during pandemic, data shows  By AMIR KHAN

A

Vancouver cyclist found his stolen bike for sale on Craigslist.

Accompanied by police officers, the owner confronted the seller, only to be advised by police that he was legally unable to seize the bike because the serial number had been “blasted off.”

The owner was offered the bike back, albeit for half of its asking price.

“I had my bike registered on Project 529 linked to the serial number,” the frustrated owner wrote on Reddit, referring to North America’s largest crowd-sourced bike registry aimed at combatting theft.

Since 2006, the Vancouver Police Department has reported an increase in bike thefts in the Vancouver area, up 40 per cent. The thefts amount to over 2,000 bikes each year, roughly equating to nine bikes stolen per day.

Retired VPD constable, Rob Brunt, recognized the issue of bike theft in Vancouver over 20 years ago when working out of a storeroom housing stolen property seized by police.

“They have this machine - it holds 500 bikes - it goes up two and a half stories and it was packed, there wasn’t a space empty,” Brunt said.

“And they had another 200 bikes on the ground.”

While searching for a solution to consolidate the seized bikes before they were taken to auction, Brunt met Jay Allard, former Microsoft Xbox co-founder and Project 529 CEO. The online bike registry quickly gained traction after being adopted by the VPD, with Vancouver’s annual Bike-to-Work Week during Oct. 2015. Over 1,500 bikes were registered in a five-day period.

“A year later, our bike theft was already down 30 per cent.”

Const. Rob Brunt (retired) at a Project 529 registration event on Granville Island. PHOTO COURTESY ROB BRUNT, 529 GARAGE

to provide additional funding in order to increase ridership, by taking the impact of bike thefts into consideration when introducing infrastructure packages.

Thefts a barrier to bike ridership

Vancouver based, HUB Cycling Association, a cycling advocacy group claims it’s working to remove bike theft as a barrier to ridership via community outreach and lobbying with local municipalities.

“First and foremost, we help prevent bike theft by advocating for More cyclists hit the road during better end-of-trip facilities,” Rianna pandemic Fiorante, marketing manager at According to the Vancouver Police HUB Cycling Association, said via Foundation, bike sales and ridership email. “We work with TransLink have increased since the start of the and building developers to facilitate COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 to the this.” tune of 300 and 400 per cent respecFiorante added that the organizatively. Brunt feared the progress that tion continues to encourage cyclists was being made of keeping bike to register with Project 529 and runs thefts down was about to be reversed. marketing campaigns to educate the “We’re still down 40 per cent even public on using better bike locks. with the increased ridership,” Brunt The majority of stolen bikes said. “I thought recovered by this was going police results in “Within two minutes only a fraction to be bad, all the good work we’ve bikes returned I found another of the of done would be to their rightful wiped out.” owners. HUB bikes that I had had The major claims “chronic stolen.” challenge facing under-reporting” — ALISTAIR BARRETT, MANAGER Project 529 and as a contributing OBSESSION E-BIKES law enforcement factor, with serial are securing the numbers rarely funds to fight bike theft. being recorded by owners, along “It’s super difficult, especially in with “error-prone” safe guarding this ‘defund the police’ atmosphere,” systems across the region.

Brunt said.

Brunt said less than five in 10 Project 529 currently charges people reported having their bike Vancouver Police a $7,000 licensing stolen when Vancouver Police first fee in order to access bike theft data. adopted the Project 529 app, adding While the Vancouver Police Foun- a report must be filed with both the dation has continued to award grants local police and the registry sepato combat bike theft by helping pay rately. for Project 529’s services, Brunt said other police forces haven’t been as Tip led owner cyclist to stolen bikes fortunate.

“Now, we’re averaging probably 60 “We saved the city just about $3.5 per cent.” million in bike thefts.”

Alistair Barrett, store manager Brunt has since lobbied the at North Vancouver based Obsesprovincial and federal governments sion E-Bikes, had his four bikes,

While bike theft projections continue to increase, actual figures have decreased since 2015, coinciding with the adoption of 529 Garage in Vancouver. DATA COURTESY ROB BRUNT, 529 GARAGE

including one eBike, stolen from his garage in August 2021. The theft prompted Barrett to register his bikes with Project 529 and retroactively declared them stolen.

The thieves in question, left their own bike on Barrett’s property.

“About two or three days after these bikes were stolen, I got an email from somebody saying, he had just seen a bike, which he thought was one of my bikes,” Barrett said.

After receiving a photo confirmation, the tip led Barrett to Vancouver’s downtown east side, using the bike the thieves had abandoned earlier. However, his bike was gone and has never been recovered.

“I thought, well, I’m in downtown on the east side, I might as well just look around since I’m down here anyway.”

“Within two minutes I found another of the bikes that I had had

stolen.”

With the help of police, Barrett was able to recover one of his missing bikes.

“A couple of weeks later, I got a call from another friend who was also on [Project 529], who had noticed that the police had made a public report of things that had been discovered at a chop shop.”

Among the discovered items were Barrett’s remaining bikes, which he was able to recover via police.

Like Barrett, the police often rely on public reports by members of the community to recover stolen bikes.

On Dec. 1, 2021, the VPD issued a press release, which announced the discovery of high-end bikes, which were found on a rooftop in downtown Vancouver’s Gastown district.

The bikes were collectively valued at $20,000.

Following reports by locals on

social media, beat officers were led to the neighbourhood.

“Because people came forward to report suspicious activity, our officers were able to launch a criminal investigation and are now working on getting these bikes back to their owners,” Sgt. Steve Addison said at the time.

Bike owners were further encouraged to register their bikes with Project 529 to increase the likelihood of helping recover their bikes if they were to be stolen.

However, Brunt said the likelihood of convicting those involved in the theft, if arrested, were “slim to none”, adding that finding proof due to various factors would be difficult to obtain due to the nature of the call.

“It was by luck that [officers] saw [the bikes], I don’ t think they were there specifically for that reason.”

8

Specialinvestigation

THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITOR MICHAEL SU

Online gambling skyrockets during Covid-19 pandemic

Gambling websites can lead to more addictive behaviour, expert says  By MICHAEL SU

of players who scored as high-risk gamers increased by one percent.

But the number of people who sought help or signed up for selfexclusion went down slightly.

“Not many people normally have problems even in casinos,” the advisor said. “So online, there were fewer people than that. On top of that, it wasn’t advertised. So if somebody’s having a problem, they didn’t know that we were online.”

U

ntil isolated at home at the start of the pandemic two years ago, longtime gambler Jacob never realized how different online gambling is.

When casinos and other nonessential establishments closed down in March 2020, Jacob — who asked that his last name not be published - soon found himself laid off from his restaurant job and stuck at home.

At first, he was worried about money, but when the federal government offered the Canada Emergency Response Benefit for workers in his situation, Jacob, 26, quickly applied.

“I was just at home collecting CERB,” he said. “Then I was watching other people and streamers and influencers investing into crypto. I decided to go into crypto, and I was making a little bit of money.”

Before the lockdown, he would visit the Grand Villa Casino once a week — about a 10-minute drive from his residence. He only brought a set amount of cash that he expected to lose.

Stuck at home without much

Private gambling sites lack safeguards The problem is that PlayNow. com isn’t the only online gambling website. Rubet, a site that gambles through cryptocurrency, is the one that landed Jacob in a worse spot.

Independent gaming sites like Rubet allow players to place bigger bets, cash out even quicker – they are “a much bigger rollercoaster ride,” Jacob said.

When his CERB funds ran low, he tried to make a comeback with his crypto wallet. By the time he had to sell his car to settle other living expenses, he realized he needed to stop. However, Rubet doesn’t have the same addiction support that PlayNow does. When the gambling stopped, Jacob was contacted quickly by the Rubet customer support.“They phoned me on my phone and asked me if I wanted to come back for a bonus that they would provide, especially for me,” he said. “That bonus would be for me to buy a certain amount and that they would double that amount. Basically, I need to have more money to play them.”

He bought in $1,000 right away just for the bonus. “They did mention when they called me with the offer that they could if I wanted to quit, if I was financially unstable and needed help to quit that they could offer me that help. But they also offered me that promotion, and the promotion just seemed so much better.”

“The accessibility, the availability is immediate, as opposed to having to take yourself to a casino.”

—JOSEPH HELIEZER, PSYCHOTHERAPIST

social life, he decided to try online gambling. He figured it couldn’t be that different from the actual casino.

He signed into the B.C. Lottery Corporation’s PlayNow.com site.

“It feels more legit since it was BCLC owned,” Jacob said. “It went very quick. I was making money, and then I could cash out whenever I wanted and added straight to my account.”

It didn’t long before things started spiralling out of control. There was no withdrawal limit, and reloading funds only took a few clicks of a mouse. When his bank and gaming accounts could be accessed much more effortlessly than walking to an ATM, it took him no more than two months to lose what he could’ve earned working as a server for a year. “The amount just seemed not so much like real money. Feels fake because it was all online,” he said.

Jacob knew he had hit rock bottom when he lost over $10,000 in an hour.

Lottery corp earned double its target from online gambling The pandemic hurt BCLC revenues hard once casinos were shuttered. But the income halt was short-termed when B.C. residents began gambling online in much greater numbers. According to BCLC’s 2020/21 annual report, closing the brick-and-mortar sites caused a significant income

“ The amount just seemed not so

much like real money. Feels fake because it was all online.”

–Jacob

Many online gambling sites can be accessed on smart phone MICHAEL SU PHOTO

decrease, with $917 million lower than a year before the pandemic.

However, BCLC rebounded quickly once the lottery service resumed, and Playnow.com raked in $1,374 billion alone, achieving more than double the expected target. At the same time, decreases in areas such as casino marketing activities, casino gaming support activities, and implementing a temporary external hiring freeze also lowered the total BCLC operation budget by four percent. This cost-saving procedure also affected GameSense, the responsible-gaming program offered

by BCLC. A senior gambling advisor for GameSense told the Langara Voice that he was re-assigned to other job casino-related jobs like checking the winning numbers and handling payouts to players when everything moved online. It was a big change for a service that relies heavily on face-to-face interaction. Before the shift to online, the GameSense kiosk would be in a small corner of the casino and visible to those who decided to seek advice about problem gambling.

“For online, we didn’t have GameSense live like that,” said the

advisor, who asked that his name not been published.

He also said the support was still available on the BCLC website.

The PlayNow webpage could be closed with a click, and re-entering it was just as easy. The pandemic brought a mass migration. During the lockdown year, 138,162 new accounts signed up on PlayNow. com, an increase almost three times more than a year before the pandemic. The B.C. government’s Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch (GPEB) concluded that during the pandemic, the percentage

Online gambling more addictive Joseph Heliezer, a registered psychotherapist in B.C., has provided addiction support to many over the years. “I’ve seen no evidence that online gambling is less addictive than going to a casino. If anything, it would be the reverse. The accessibility, the availability is immediate, as opposed to having to take yourself to a casino,” Heliezer said. “I think the more aware one becomes of one’s natural impulses the more one is better to able to navigate, some of, you know, the impulse that inspires them to push the button. If I were to guess, I would say the impulse is harder to avoid at home.”

With the support of his partner and friends, Jacob finally gave in, attending Gambler Anonymous meetings from time to time. But his impulse to win back his money was still intense.

He wonders whether the online games he got hooked on were rigged all along.“Is it like presets of whether you can win or not?… I’m sure it isn’t, but like it’s just that the mentality behind it when you start losing.”

Specialinvestigation

EDITOR HOLLIE MCGOWAN | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | THE VOICE

9

Attendees of Bass Coast Electronic Music and Arts Festival 2019 gather at the Main Stage during last year of operation before COVID-19 pandemic. PHOTO COURTESY MARY MATHESON

Outdoor B.C. music festivals are back, yet the pandemic is not over

Organizers navigate unchartered territory of hosting large-scale events now

 By HOLLIE MCGOWAN

O

utdoor BC music festivals are back this year for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, yet the virus still looms.

Roughly 75 to 80 festivals across the province were forced to cancel their scheduled events for the summer of 2020, disrupting plans that organizers had been working on for the entire year beforehand.

The next summer, they were met with the same fate as COVID-19 variants were still developing and circulating globally.

Two years later they are now making their grand return, yet with a mixture of both excitement and trepidation through the uncharted territory of hosting large scale events during a global pandemic.

“This feels very much like we’re both reinventing the wheel, having to possibly change plans with 24to 48-hour notice for, you know, an event that has 15 to 20,000 people a day,” said Vancouver Folk Festival artistic executive director, Debbie Salmonsen. “It is both exciting and terrifying, because it’s like doing an event for the first time in a way.”

“Everything’s quite different,” said Bass Coast Electronic Music and Arts Festival co-founder and artistic director, Liz Thomson. “There’s been a lot of changes for us. We’re requiring that our staff, everybody involved, needs to have a vaccine passport in order to work and that was a really difficult decision for us.”

They may be opening their gates again, but festivals throughout BC are cognizant of the reality that the pandemic is still not quite over.

Although the numbers continue to go down, COVID-19 variants are still in B.C. with daily numbers sitting at 220 new recorded cases per day as of March 21st.

Deb Beaton-Smith, executive director of the British Columbia Music Festival Collective and founder of Beat Music Management, says that demographics will have a lot to do with who is comfortable returning and who isn’t. Depending on the age category or type of music, she says that some may decide to reenter the festivities while others continue to avoid the crowds.

“It kind of depends on what’s happening,” said Beaton-Smith.

“I think in people’s lives and to a certain degree people have become very climatized to the opportunities … to see events online. People love them. Lots of people want to see it real, they’re tired of seeing things here. Zoom is very efficient but it’s not a real concert.”

Not knowing what is going to happen, whether it be having to switch COVID safety measures or shut-down the event entirely on a moment’s notice, outdoor music festivals are having to make sure that they have several contingency plans in place.

“Across the board, across the province, across Canada, all large festivals are taking the same stance,” Thomson said. “We’re all following the mandates that are put in by the public health officer.”

In order to reopen, Thomson says that festivals are required by law to have adequate public health measures.

“All you can do is take the worstcase scenario,” she said. “We can’t not follow public health orders.”

Though there may be excitement

Waking from a two-year slumber in the air, festival organizers are also returning to the reality that their once fully staffed events are not the well-oiled machines they were two years ago.

“I’ve got directors saying, ‘It’s

been three years. We’re rusty,’” said its support of more than 680 events.

In an effort to help save the B.C. Beaton-Smith.

In addition to having to relearn arts and culture sectors, it provided the ropes of running large scale nearly $30 million through one-time events, BC festival organizers are grants to eligible events for support. also remerging to major staff short- Grant amounts for each event were ages after a two-year drought within as much as 20 per cent of the total the festival and live events industry. event budget for a maximum of “There’s a huge gig economy $250,000. amongst the supply chain of people On the B.C. Government website, that are Minister of involved in Tourism, Arts, “This feels very festivals,” said Culture and Beaton-Smith.

Sport, Melanie much like we’re both “I know more Mark states: people than “ We h e a r d reinventing the wheel, ov e r w h e l m not that either having to possibly ingly from got a full-time job somewhere change plans with 24- to event organizelse, changed ers that grants, 48-hour notice for, you careers or have not loans, were key to gone back to know, an event that has keeping their school.” doors open Staffing 15 to 20,000 people to the public issues have also a day.” and workers been the result — DEBBIE SALMONSEN of having to employed. Our ARTISITIC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR operate with a g ov e r n m e n t VANCOUVER FOLK FESTIVAL much smaller answered their budget. call to action, “We gave up our office space and as we know the major impact these moved into an arts collective space community gatherings have on our with the Vancouver Opera and mental health and local businesses other groups,” Salmonsen said. “We around them.” downsized our staff to two for the “They really truly listened,” said two years of COVID.” Beaton-Smith. “I can’t say how, how Downsizing and government grateful I am that they have created support through grants were some of like a conduit and allowed us to have the only ways that some B.C. music a voice.” festivals have survived the pandemic Even regular attendees of festiso far. vals chipped in what they could to Salmonsen says that if it weren’t support their favorite events. for financial support from organiza“I’m so grateful for the people tions such as the B.C. Arts Coun- who have sent us like $5, or $20, or cil, the City of Vancouver and the $500, in support, you know, to keep Department of Canadian Heritage, the festival going,” Salmonsen said.

“Because they love it.” they wouldn’t have made it.

On Dec. 13, 2021, the B.C. “We all have recognized the government issued a statement importance of festivals and music regarding the Fairs, Festivals and and music festivals and community,” Events Recovery Grant regarding said Beaton-Smith. “My experience

in doing the small community music festivals is it really takes the whole community’s support to make it happen.

Banding together for support Despite a challenging and strenuous two years, there have been a few silver linings. One of those was the creation of the British Columbia Music Festival Collective.

Shortly after the announcement made by B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry in March 2020 regarding the termination of public events for the unforeseeable future, music festivals in B.C. turned to each other.

“It’s one of the few good things we see in coming out of the pandemic is the fact that there’s been so much more collaboration and discussion and communication in the arts,” said Beaton-Smith. “We all know we’re competitive. I mean, you have to be competitive to sell your art … But we will be so much more successful (in working) together.”

“One of the things that we’re looking at doing within the BC Music Festival Collective internally is creating training programs and part of our mandate is knowledge, information,” Beaton-Smith said. “Part of it would be to support other organizations that are looking at doing training programs in different areas, and then creating an internal database or connecting them with festivals that say ‘Hey, we really need somebody.’”

Although many will be making their grand return this year, many festivals did not survive the pandemic. “I want to take a moment to acknowledge those festivals that didn’t survive,” said Beaton-Smith.

It has been a tough two years for festivals and the artists of BC. Despite many setbacks, they will continue to persist.

10

THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITORS L. POGORELO & L. VANDERDEEN

Specialinvestigation

A woman walks past racks of used clothing for sale at a pop-up store in Vancouver, B.C. LESIA POGORELO PHOTO

Tonnes of discarded clothing weighs on local environment

Attitudes toward clothing, fast-changing fashion needs to change: expert

 By LESIA POGORELO &  LAUREN VANDERDEEN

M

etro Vancouver’s yearly textile waste, including clothes, towels and sheets, is onethird the weight of the CN Tower.

That’s 40,000 tonnes.

Experts say brands, governments and consumers need to get educated on the effects of throwing out your used clothes – and take action.

Lauren Degenstein, who has a master’s degree in human ecology and specializes in textile sustainability, said the increase in textile consumption began with the rise of “fast fashion” in the 1990s, when many different styles of clothes began to appear on the market and seasonal trends began to change rapidly. Consumers began buying more clothes and wearing each item fewer times.

Not only has clothing quality decreased, but higher prices don’t necessarily entail better quality.

Since then, Degenstein said much of the responsibility for ethical purchasing falls to individuals.

“We also need to have brand accountability, we also need to have policies in place so that brands are held accountable,” she said.

City programs aid textile recycling Vancouverites can drop off their used textiles at the bottle depot Return-It station. Sandy Sigmund, Return-It’s vice-president of devel-

opment and chief marketing officer, recycled, they might confuse textile said the company is using its recy- recycling with textile reusing. cling infrastructure to make it easy Return-It, the Salvation Army and for people to help the environment. other used clothing shops are all part In 2021, Sigmund said Return- of the reuse stage, but Sigmund noted It collected 478,853 kilograms of there are no real textile recyclers in textiles, a 31 per cent rise from 2020. Western Canada.

The collected textiles are trans“I think in order for textile recyferred to the Salvation Army for cling to really become significant, reuse. What’s not sold is shipped especially here in British Columoverseas to new markets. bia, or in Western Canada, we need “What we need is to build in a to have local markets and markets circular economy, so that [textiles are] to recycle the materials, so it can get used over and over again, to be made turned back into the monomers and into the materials and right now that polymers made into fabric again, so does not happen,” Sigmund said. that brand owners can use that fabric A circular economy aims to keep to make new clothes,” Sigmund said. products out of the garbage, extendSigmund said that kind of textile ing the use of products to keep them recycling infrastructure doesn’t from becoming necessarily waste. come from the “We also need to have M e t r o government. policies in place so Va n c o u v e r ’s CustomThink Thrice ers need to that brands are held campaign want to make accountable.” strives to sure they ’re educate resibuying cloth— LAUREN DEGENSTEIN, DAVEY TEXTILE SOLUTIONS dents on reducing with recying textile cled content to waste, including options for repair increase demand and influence brand and reuse. owners to source new materials.

Karen Storry, a senior engineer “The best regulation is one that just for Metro Vancouver’s solid waste says you should have some recycled services, said while running the content in your material,” Sigmund campaign, she found that people said. “That incentivizes both customdidn’t understand that they could ers to want it, and brand owners to donate any kind of textile, as long as provide it.” it’s clean and dry. Even holey shirts Storry said other countries have and ripped jeans have a market. implemented some regulations for Sigmund said while most people clothing brands. understand that plastic bottles can be She said France has introduced an

extended producer repair program for textiles. Durability standards, which are emerging in the electronics sector, could happen for textiles, as could lower taxes for textile repair.

On March 30, the European Union proposed new regulations to ensure clothing sold in Europe is longerlasting and easier to repair in an attempt to reduce textile waste. The initiative will also provide consumers with more information on how to reuse, repair and recycle their clothes.

Shopping habits hard to break Awareness of the problem doesn’t necessarily deter people from buying new.

Oksana Honcharova said shopping always cheers her up. Honcharova lives in the small Saskatchewan town Bienfait and enjoys the variety of clothes she can find online.

“It especially delights me when you look for a thing for a long time, and then you find that very perfect handbag – these feelings cannot be explained in words. Joy has no limit. New things give me the feeling that something new and pleasant will definitely happen in my life,” Honcharova said.

Angela Marie MacDougall is the executive director of Battered Women’s Support Services which runs My Sister’s Closet, an “eco-thrift boutique.”

“We’re trying to bring more ethics into shopping and clothing,” MacDougall said. “We’re not at a critical mass yet, not even close, but

we are definitely pushing for that.”

MacDougall wants to draw awareness to the interconnected, global systems that our clothing is a part of.

For Honcharova, purchasing is still part of her lifestyle.

“I feel guilty if I don’t buy something. I sit and suffer, walk around the apartment and look for what needs to be replaced or bought in addition, reviewing my wardrobe and trying to find what I lack. And, as a rule, I always come up with a reason to buy,” Honcharova said.

Degenstein’s first suggestion for a person who wants to change their purchasing habits is to look to what’s already in your wardrobe. She also recommended developing a cost per wear system and encouraged buying from thrift stores and participating in clothing swaps.

Storry said you can look great, minimize waste and save money by buying used clothes. “It’s really time to rethink our our closets and how we manage our clothes, and to look for things that you’re going to love for a long time and wear for a long time,” she said.

For Degenstein, the shift is needed.

“I don’t foresee in the future, when we have more resource scarcity, that we can just continue to produce and consume as much as we are,” she said.

“I would say both in environmental and social standpoint, there needs to be changes because it’s just not a sustainable industry, in that we’re using up all the resources we need for it to continue.”

Specialinvestigation

EDITOR CORVIN VASKI | TUESDAY, APRIL 05, 2022 | THE VOICE

11

No plan for platform barriers despite deaths SkyTrain users waiting on the platfrom for the next SkyTrain.

Safety measure too costly: TransLink  By CORVIN VASKI

W

ith ridership increasing on the SkyTrain system and expected to return soon to pre-pandemic levels, how can stations be made safer for everyone?

According to the most recent data from the BC Coroners Service, from 1987 to 2017, there were 86 SkyTrain-related deaths - roughly three a year. The majority were suicide, but some were accidental.

Platform barriers are being installed in other North American countries and becoming the norm in Europe and Asia, but there are no plans for the additional safety measure on the Metro Vancouver system despite more than 30 years of deaths.

The first fatality on the SkyTrain system happened on Sept 15, 1987 when a 56-year-old woman either fell or jumped onto the tracks at 29th Avenue Station. She died instantly.

In October 2006, a man in his 20s stumbled and fell on the tracks at Gateway Station around midnight.

Many use the SkyTrain late at night as they depend on transit to get home after work or a night out with friends.

A blind man fell on the tracks on June 26, 2015, at Commercial-Broadway station. Some SFU students saved him by quickly noticing and pulling him up and off the tracks preventing what could have been a deadly situation.

The platforms of SkyTrain stations have posed a danger to the users since the system began running and though there have been safety improvements over the years, the risk of dying on the tracks has not gone away.

SkyTrain cars are massive machines and so when the track intrusion system is triggered, and the trains hit their emergency brakes the trains go some distance before coming to a complete stop. If someone falls onto the track the train could be too close and not able to stop in time.

PHOTO COURTSEY REM

Tragic deaths leave witnesses devastated

Deaths on the SkyTrain system have a large impact on everyone attendants, control room operators, first-responders, and passengers.

“We’ve had deaths on the system,” said CUPE 7000 Union President Tony Rebelo. “I don’t like to talk about it too much because I’ve been to a bunch of them.”

All these safety measures in place are effective to a certain extent and they all have in common the same shortcoming, they are not a physical barrier in place 24/7.

Platform screen doors are becoming popular in parts of Europe and Asia but are a rare sight to see in North America. You might find them at an airport or on the Las Vegas monorail, which is a tourist attraction, but not on North American public transit.

The screen doors are either floor to ceiling height or half height and similar to the height of an entry gate. The doors are on the edge of the platform preventing debris and people from the tracks. When a train arrives at the platform the train doors stop at the same spot as the platform doors and open simultaneously.

Montreal and New York trains adding platform doors The Réseau express métropolitain is a new automated train network being built in Montreal. It will be 67 km of tracks when it fully opens in 2023-2024. Parts of the system are expected to begin operating this year. On the REM, platform screen doors are being installed on each of its 26 stations for various reasons.

According to the REM website, “this is the first time in North America that a public transit system of this size will be equipped with platform screen doors.”

“This is the three main reasons I will say we decided to go ahead with this technology. The security, reliability and the comfort of the users,” said Emmanuelle RouillardMoreau, advisor, media relations and communications.

The platform screen doors being installed on the REM are floor to ceiling height keeping the cold Montreal winters out of the station and keeping users warm on the platform and inside the train cars.

“One of the most important

advantages is the reliability of the system. The platform screen doors protect any stuff off the system. For example, right now one of the main issues is that people often drop their cellphone on the line when there are no platform screen doors, they can also drop any other object. So in terms of reliability, it’s a major advantage, there’s nothing you can drop on the line,” Rouillard-Moreau said in an interview.

In late February. the Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced that they will install platform screen doors at three New York subway stations as a pilot program.

The authority has been against installing the doors because of the cost and maintenance required.

That changed following the death of Michelle Go, who was pushed onto the tracks and killed at a Manhattan station in January of this year. Go’s death was the breaking point for the public after recent spikes in subway station violence across New York.

TransLink, which operates SkyTrain, did not respond to a request for an interview. But in an emailed statement, media manager Tina Lovgreen said that platform screen doors are not feasible, because of the cost associated. And she said that there are different models of trains in the line with different door sizes making it “impossible” to install screen doors that would work across the system.

Platform screen doors to be installed on the new REM train network in Montreal Que. PHOTO CURTOSY REM

People with disabilities more vulnerable Pam Horton, the board chair of Disability Alliance B.C., said it’s time for similar action in this province.

“I would love to see TransLink do a pilot of this, even if it was only at a couple of stations,” Horton said in an interview.

A pilot program would allow for the public to experience platform screen doors, highlighting if the doors are something that improves users’ safety and experience on the line. A pilot would allow for everyone to use the doors and if they work for people of all accessibility levels.

“You’ve got folks with different auditory and other sensory issues.

Folks from the Community Living sector, and they all react to we all react to different things in different ways,” said Horton.

Platform screen doors to be installed on the new REM train network in Montreal Que. PHOTO COURTESY REM

12

THE VOICE | TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2022 | EDITOR CLAIRE WILSON

Specialinvestigation

A woman walks past The Medical Cannabis Dispensary, which is famous in Vancouver for catering to a specifically medical clientele. CLAIRE WILSON PHOTO

Prescribed pot users forgotten Recreational cannabis system does not cater to all, advocates say  By CLAIRE WILSON

M

edical cannabis users are experiencing difficulties obtaining the products they need in a legal industry designed to serve recreational users.

According to Dana Larsen, cannabis activist and founder of The Medical Cannabis Dispensary, medical patients that need cannabis have been shunted aside.

“It was the medical movement and medical users and activists that got us to legalization, and they kind of have been forgotten post-legalization,” Larsen said.

The Cannabis Act is the legal framework under which cannabis is produced, distributed and sold in

Canada. However, it is a recreational system that puts medical users at a disadvantage due to regulations like limits on potency.

Mark Haden, an adjunct professor at the University of B.C. and expert on cannabis, says the public needs to understand the benefits of a medical cannabis system that would include medically oriented research and health coverage.

“If somebody walks into a doctor’s office and says I have chronic pain, the physician might just say opiates, but if it’s medicalized and physicians are involved, they may understand that maybe the best treatment for them is cannabis,” Haden said.

Larsen says that many medical patients fall under the category of heavy users. This means that they

need a higher dosage of THC, the psychoactive chemical in cannabis, that is heavily regulated under cannabis laws and can come at a cost.

“They might make sense for a first-time user who is trying to be cautious and doesn’t want to have too strong of a psychoactive effect,” he said.

In addition, the products available at legal cannabis stores don’t cater to some medical users.

“There’s some things like cannabis suppositories that, you know, most people don’t want to use,” Larsen said. “But for some medical users, those are a crucial part of their treatment and those kinds of products are very difficult to get under legalization and not really available.”

Another main reason that medi-

cal users find it difficult to successfully use medical cannabis is the packaging. Legal products are sold in government regulated childproof packaging, but for patients with arthritis or other motor issues, this can be a nightmare.

“If you’ve got, you know, arthritis or hand issues or you’re older or have problems, just trying to get in there and get your medicine or get your product can be very challenging,” Larsen said.

Kelly Gorman, of the Arthritis Society, said in an emailed statement that while she understands the safety concerns, the type of packaging used for cannabis can be difficult for someone with arthritis to open.

For some medical users, illegal websites or dispensaries offer a range

of products and potency limits that they cannot find in the legal market.

The B.C. ministry of public safety declined to answer several questions submitted by a Voice reporter about medical users turning to illicit suppliers.

According to Larsen, the illegal market is filling a gap for medical users.

“I think that there’s still stuff in the gray market that we provide that is not matched by the legal system,” he said.

This story is part of an investigative series by Langara Voice reporters on the illicit cannabis market in B.C. The rest of the series will be posted online at https://www.langaravoice.ca on April 5.

Medical growers driving illicit cannabis

Culprits use Health Canada licences as a cover  By GRAHAM ABRAHAM

T

he majority of illegal cannabis grow operations in the province are conducted by licenced medical growers producing far over their legal capacity, according to both the RCMP and the B.C. Ministry of Public Safety.

“What we are seeing is an expan-

sion of medical authorizations,” said Sgt. Shane Holmquist, who works in drug advisory for the RCMP. “It can be used as a cover for, you know, some large-scale production on some of these sites.”

Holmquist said that growers will often produce much greater quantities of cannabis than they are legally permitted under their Health Canada licence, then sell the excess product for profit.

In one case he referenced, Holmquist said that a medicallylicenced grower was legally allowed to grow up to 998 plants at a time, but was caught growing 16,931 plants.

In 2020, Delta Police seized

18,000 cannabis plants and 1,400 pounds of cannabis from an illegal grow site.

Police said that Hells Angels stickers were found on motorcycles located on the property.

Mike In Canada, Farnworth those with B.C. PUBLIC SAFETY a medical MINISTER prescription can receive a Health Canada licence to grow their own cannabis.

In 2021, 292,399 Canadians were

prescribed cannabis for medical purposes. Of those, 39,525 or around 14 per cent are licenced to cultivate and produce their own cannabis for personal consumption.

The licence does not allow the grower to sell the cannabis.

Holmquist said that a lack of data makes enforcement challenging.

“It is challenging because we just don’t have the data. Like, I would love to be able to say to you that, you know, this is the percentage of investigations that are grows or this the percentage of medical authorizations that are going over or the percentage being compliant. I just don’t have that data.”

B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth also said that the majority of illicit grow operations are being operated by those who have obtained a medical licence to grow for personal use.

Farnworth agreed with Holmquist that the lack of data available, collected and shared is insufficient in order to adequately address and deter illegal activity.

“Part of the challenge is that there is a lack of inspection by Health Canada on that. And we can work if we have an understanding of where [illegal grow operations] are, but there’s not a lot of information sharing that allows us to go after them.”