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Wednesday, October 1, 2014
New burning regs aim to improve air quality for everyone Only those on large lots in Langford will be issued outdoor burning permits Angela Cowan News Gazette staff
Arnold Lim/News Gazette staff
Emma MacPhail, a resident at Alexander Mackie Lodge on Station Avenue, is one of several scooter riders who have toppled over on Phipps Road trying to access the Langford Walmart.
Calls for action heard Injured scooter rider prompts retail giant to take action to fix steep corner Arnold Lim News Gazette staff
A trip to the supermarket that ended in injury for Emma MacPhail prompted her to ensure it doesn’t happen again, to her or any other motorized scooter users. And it turns out her efforts to make positive change are being acted upon. The 90-year-old resident of the
Alexander Mackie Lodge in Langford was riding to Walmart along Phipps Road on July 25. When she attempted to turn right off Phipps and head up toward the store, she and her scooter toppled over at the corner, which has a steep incline and a narrow path she said make it very challenging to navigate safely. “I fell onto the road. It’s a dangerous place to fall, because the sidewalk is narrow (and) if you fall as I did into the road, it is quite dangerous,” she said. “If a car came along it could run you over.” Fortunately for her, a quickthinking friend riding behind her
drove her scooter onto the road to block traffic, but MacPhail, a retired social worker, said the damage was done. “I skinned my arm, (it) was bleeding and sore and all my side was hurt. It took seven weeks before it cured. I had a lot of injuries with muscles and it was hard to breathe,” she said. “It hurt to take a deep breath and it hurt to lie down.” MacPhail wrote the City of Langford and the manager of Walmart, hoping to prevent others from suffering the same fate. PLEASE SEE: Langford senior, Page A3
Some choices are hard.
New burning regulations now in effect for Langford will drastically change how residents rid themselves of fallen leaves and branches this autumn. The old rules allowed residents to burn on their lots the first Friday and Saturday of the month, from October to May. Starting this season, in a bid to reduce harmful air pollution for the entire municipality, new bylaws have been put into effect that restrict burning to two month-long periods, Nov. 1 to 30 and Feb. 15 to March 15. Anyone wanting to burn during those times also has to apply for a permit through the Langford Fire Department. “This has really been driven by the citizens,” said assistant chief Chris Aubrey. “We’ve had numerous feedback over the years about air quality and smoke. Every day we had a burn day, we’d get concerned citizens calling in saying, ‘my kid’s got asthma,’ or asking why there was so much smoke.” One of the most significant changes is that burning permits will only be issued to residents with a lot size of a half acre or greater. “If you think about the CRD smoking regulations, you have to be 30 feet from public doorways
and windows, because people were being affected by secondhand smoke,” Aubrey said. “This is the same sort of thing. If you only have a few feet between you and your neighbour, the smoke blows directly into their yard.” A limit of 20 burn permits per day will be issued, with approval on a first-come, first-served basis. Households are limited to two permits per burning period. In spreading outdoor burning over a longer period, the hope is to mitigate the heavy clouds of smoke that have traditionally hung over Langford and caused health concerns, Aubrey said. Another major change, he added, is a ban on burning in what are considered “fire hazard areas” – heavily forested or remote areas where the “potential of a fire getting out of hand is too much of a risk to residents.” Residents can find a map outlining banned areas on the City of Langford website. “We recognize most communities around us have banned (outdoor) burning altogether,” Aubrey said. He encouraged residents to think about the “Three Cs” if burning is not an option: chipping, composting or commercial disposal. For more information on the new regulations, visit cityoflangford.ca. acowan@goldstreamgazette.com
Some are easy.
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