Air Quality

To perform at their best, athletes require good air quality, both outdoors and indoors. Outdoor air quality within the Lower Mainland and the Sea to Sky corridor (from Vancouver to Whistler) is linked to emissions of air contaminants such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides and volatile organic compounds. The sources of these emissions include transportation, industrial facilities, power generation, building systems and construction activities. Indoor air quality and human health can be negatively affected by emissions from a variety of sources, including paints, floor coverings, furnishings, cleaning supplies and heating, ventilation or air conditioning systems.

As we plan for the Games, we are ensuring minimal negative impacts to indoor and outdoor air quality. We do that through:

LEED Green Building Rating System — We apply LEED green building criteria in venue development and at our head office, including low-emission interior construction materials and furnishings, natural ventilation and high-quality air/heating systems.

The high-rise building at our VANOC head office achieved LEED Gold certification. High indoor air quality was achieved through increased ventilation and low-emitting adhesives, sealants, paints, coatings, furniture, seating and carpet systems. Application of LEED principles at all other venues also integrates similar indoor air quality considerations in the design, planning and procurement phases of venue construction.

Construction Best Practices — We follow Environmental Management Plan guidelines for best practices in outdoor air quality, including minimizing dust and vehicle emissions.

Our venue-based Environmental Management Plans and other policies continue to guide air quality protection, including fugitive dust control at construction sites; a no-idling policy with our fleet vehicles; and minimal burning of vegetation debris at construction sites. The wood waste composting project at Whistler Olympic Park also helped to protect air quality by minimizing burning.

Reducing Energy Consumption and Air Contaminants — Increasing energy efficiency and reducing consumption of carbon-based energy not only reduces GHG emissions and their effect on global warming, but also reduces impacts on air quality by limiting the amount of air contaminants released.

Our efforts to increase energy efficiency and reduce fossil fuel consumption, outlined in Energy and Climate Change, led to both reduced GHG emissions and reduced air contaminants.