Open Collections

Aceto, Mariah

In the Greenest City 2020 Action Plan, the City of Vancouver has set the goal of reducing the City’s per capita water consumption by 33% from its 2006 consumption rate. This paper highlights an opportunity where the City itself can reduce water consumption. This paper looks at how the City can implement rainwater harvesting at its Work Yards, in particular the Manitoba and the Evans Works Yards. The findings of this research could then be applied to other works yards throughout Vancouver. The research was divided into three main parts, which included a literature review and site tours of the VanDusen Visitor Centre and the Creekside Community Centre which informed the best practices for rainwater harvesting. The second part included site tours of the Manitoba and Evans Works Yards to determine the opportunities for rainwater harvesting at these sites. The third and final part discusses how much water can be collected and the associated savings that accompany its collection. The research conducted has led to the following recommendations for the City of Vancouver’s Works Yards: o Implement water metering on the hoses used for non-potable operations o Use harvested rainwater for outdoor non-potable purposes: vehicle washing, irrigation and street cleaning o Thorough design review to ensure all system components are cohesive, as well as talking to maintenance technicians during the design process o Hire dedicated individuals for post installation o External system with an above ground tank

Text

University of British Columbia. GEOG 419

Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library

10.14288/1.0075675

Arts, Faculty of; Geography, Department of

Unreviewed

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ca/