Date:

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Place:

Anderson Room

Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Harold Steves, Chair

Councillor Evelina Halsey-Brandt, Vice-Chair

Councillor Sue Halsey-Brandt

Councillor Ken Johnston

Councillor Bill McNulty

Mayor Malcolm Brodie

Also Present:

Councillor Linda Barnes

Councillor Greg Halsey-Brandt

Councillor Derek Dang

Call to Order:

The meeting was called to order at 4:00 p.m.

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Committee held on Wednesday, May 26, 2010, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room.

It was agreed that the following items be added to the agenda:

i)

Wellness Strategy for Council Members and Staff During Long Meetings; and

ii)

Non-Compliance by Dog Owners of On-Leash Bylaws at Iona Metro Park.

PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT

1.

Pre-School Playground Areas

(File Ref. No.:  06-2345-01) (REDMS No. 2912592)

Serena Lusk, Manager, Parks-Planning and Design, provided the following information in response to queries:

§          

current playground projects that help meet universal accessibility guidelines are in Tait Elementary School and Steveston Community Park;

§          

Garden City Community Park offers  play opportunities for toddlers in the City Centre area and Paulik Neighbourhood Park will provide tot swings in the playground area by the end of the year;

§          

staff is working with the City Centre Community Association to upgrade Cook Elementary School Park; and

§          

playground equipment being provided for pre-school aged children has a life span of 10 years.

Comments were made regarding (i) the high population of pre-school aged children in the City Centre Area and the lack of playgrounds and play opportunities for infants and toddlers in the said area; and (ii) the possible undesirable effects of the lack of playgrounds for kids living in the City Centre area.

In view of said comments, direction was given that Parks and Recreation staff coordinate with Planning Department staff and report back on:

i)

the specific needs of all City Centre area parks, pre-school age playground equipment to be provided in each park, and status of planned acquisition and construction of parks;

ii)

the status of development applications in the City Centre area including  proposed outdoor amenities; and

iii)

a joint and proactive strategy to provide sufficient playground areas and outdoor amenities for pre-school aged children in the City Centre area.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report, dated June 8, 2010, from the General Manager, Parks and Recreation, entitled “Pre-School Playground Areas”, be received for information.

CARRIED

2.

Snow Geese Management Strategy

(File Ref. No.:  11-7375-00) (REDMS No. 2810813)

Jack Evans, Wildlife Biologist, Fish and Wildlife Branch, B.C. Ministry of Environment, distributed copies of the Fraser Valley Special Hunting License Brochure (copy on file, Clerk’s Office) and stated the following:

§          

there are around 2,000 holders of Fraser Valley special area hunting licenses and contrary to the staff report, the number of waterfowl hunters in Fraser Valley has remained stable for a long time;

§          

harvest of waterfowl for food, social and ceremonial reasons are presently done by First Nations in Lower Mainland;

§          

the population of snow geese has increased dramatically during the last ten years and control of their behaviour and distribution poses a big challenge to Richmond;

§          

waterfowl hunting is the most effective tool in North America  in controlling waterfowl behaviour and does not cost anything;

§          

available and conscientious volunteers for waterfowl hunting can be tapped and certain techniques and regulations can be put in place to promote public safety;

§          

waterfowl hunting using shotguns already exists in Richmond through a permit system which could be expanded to cover Crown land areas; and

§          

no issues and complaints on the said activity have been raised so far by regulatory and law enforcement agencies.

In response to queries from Committee, Mr. Evans advised the following:

§          

public use of the west dyke can continue and need not be impacted by the proposed hunting strategy as a training course for hunters could be made specifically tailored for the area as was done in Squamish;

§          

snow geese behaviour is affected by the weather and tide movements;

§          

the maximum level of activity is needed to influence their behaviour and the best case scenario is that hunting is done on a daily basis;

§          

hunting by permission gives policy makers control over the conduct of hunting to protect the safety of the public such as limited access for hunters to certain places and placement of appropriate warning signage;

§          

waterfowl hunting can reduce waterfowl population, but its bigger impact is its ability to control and influence the distribution and behaviour of birds; and

§          

a study pointed out that Fraser delta can support about 40,000 snow geese on a sustainable basis.

The Chair distributed copies of his report to the Committee (Attached to and forming part to these Minutes as Schedule 1) and spoke on the marked increase of snow geese population in Sturgeon Bank which grew from about 20,000 in 1972 to around 100,000 at present. He added that in 1972, scientists Harris and Halliday made a study about the snow geese population entitled Commitment to the Future and appeared before Council where they predicted the occurrence of the present-day snow geese phenomenon in Richmond.

The Chair further advised that:

§          

in 1972, snow geese brought destruction to Sturgeon Bank where they dug and ate the roots of bulrushes and transformed it into a muddy area which remains at present;

§          

the same kind of damage was done by the snow geese in inland areas near the dyke in Steveston which deprived the cows of pasture areas; and

§          

the destruction wrought by the snow geese would not have happened if hunting had not been banned in Sturgeon Bank as the problem could not be solved through hazing.

In response to a query, Dave Semple, General Manager, Parks and Recreation, clarified that (i) he recommends option 2 as outlined in the staff report; (ii) other options to be considered in the future will have to be guided by science; and  (iii) the proposal of snow geese hunting by professionals will be subject to public discussion and will be considered only as a last resort if no significant results are seen in the first and second years of implementation of option 2.

In response to a query, Mr. Evans advised that donation of  hunted snow geese to the food bank is not feasible due to public health concerns.

It was moved and seconded

That option 2 as outlined in the staff report dated June 16, 2010, from the General Manager, Parks and Recreation, entitled “Snow Geese Management Strategy” be adopted and that funding for the first year of implementation of the strategy will be considered from the 2009 surplus funds and for the succeeding two years through the regular budget process.

The question on the motion was not called as comments were made regarding (i) the high cost of implementing option 2 compared to other effective and  inexpensive methods in reducing snow geese population such as culling; (ii) the possibility of using option 2 as a guideline and implement only those components that are workable (which excludes the winter crop cover program in Richmond)  and looking  into other alternatives such as the hiring of professional hunters; (iii) the need to deal promptly with the problem brought about by the increase in snow geese population in Richmond; and (iv) the ineffectiveness of hazing as a method to alter snow geese behaviour and distribution. 

The question on the motion was then called and it was CARRIED with Councillors Johnston and McNulty opposed.

It was moved and seconded

That staff report back on a wildlife management strategy for snow geese and widgeons on the west dyke similar to what is being implemented at the Vancouver International Airport (YVR).

CARRIED

The Chair requested that a representative of YVR be invited to make a presentation to the Committee on YVR’s wildlife management strategy when staff reports back to the Committee on the matter.

CORRESPONDENCE & PROJECTS

3.

None.

4.

MANAGER’S REPORT

None.

OTHER ITEMS

5.

WELLNESS STRATEGY FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND STAFF DURING LONG MEETINGS

Cllr. Barnes advised Committee on the adverse effects to health of  prolonged sitting during long meetings. Discussion ensued regarding various ways of dealing with the issue particularly during long Council meetings.

As a result of the discussion, direction was given that staff report back on a wellness strategy for staff and Council members for meetings of more than two hours duration.

6.

NON-COMPLIANCE BY DOG OWNERS OF ON-LEASH BYLAWS AT IONA METRO PARK

Cllr. Sue Halsey-Brandt advised Committee of a letter from Richard Swantson (attached to and forming part to these Minutes as Schedule 2) regarding the non-compliance by dog owners of on-leash bylaws at Iona Metro Park and direction was given that staff  communicate with Metro Vancouver to maintain contact on the issue.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (5:26 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Tuesday, June 29, 2010.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Councillor Harold Steves

Chair

Rustico Agawin

Committee Clerk