PETITION TO REGULATE OR RELOCATE WEST COAST REDUCTION PLANT AND HALLMARK POULTRY PROCESSORS LTD. 

To: Vancouver City Council, Mayor Ken Sim, Metro Vancouver Board of Directors, BC Ministry of Environment, BC Premier David Eby and Vancouver Coastal Health Authority

We, the undersigned residents and community members of East and Greater Vancouver, urgently request decisive action to address the ongoing extreme odour and environmental nuisance caused by West Coast Reduction Plant and Hallmark Poultry Processors Ltd., located at 105 N Commercial Dr and 1756 Pandora Street in East Vancouver. 

For years, these facility has produced overwhelming and putrid odours that significantly impact residents, businesses and overall quality of life in East Vancouver. On warm days, the smell is often so intense that it forces residents to shut windows, avoid outdoor spaces, and endure nausea, headaches, and stress. Many describe it as the scent of rotting meat or open sewage and it is a stench that lingers and disrupts daily living.

In addition to health and lifestyle concerns, many residents are increasingly worried about the potential impact this issue may have on property values in the area. Persistent industrial odour and the negative perception it creates  influences how the neighbourhood is viewed by prospective commercial and residential home buyers,  renters, which in turn affects property values and long-term investment and daily life in our community.

We believe this is unacceptable in a densely populated urban neighbourhood and is incompatible with the evolving mixed-use character of East Vancouver.

We therefore call on City and provincial officials to:
    1.    Investigate, publicly report and compile complaints already made regarding the odour emissions from West Coast Reduction Plant and Hallmark Poultry and the plant’s compliance with air quality standards and nuisance bylaws.
    2.    Require West Coast Reduction Plant and Hallmark Poultry to implement immediate and verifiable odour mitigation measures, including scrubbers, filters, and containment of the air contaminants and stench.
    3.    Impose enforceable odour limits through Metro Vancouver permits or City bylaws and issue fines or penalties for unmitigated ongoing violations (which persist on a weekly and daily basis).
    4.    Pursue studies and relocation of these facilities to a more appropriate industrial zone outside the residential core if the odour cannot be fully contained.
    5.    Recognize this as a community health, livability and property value issue, and involve Vancouver Coastal Health and BC Ministry of Environment to assess and mitigate the long-term impact on residents’ well-being this has and continues to cause. 

This is not an isolated complaint — it is a chronic and widely recognized community-wide problem that anyone who passes through, let alone has to live in the area. 

We respectfully demand that our leaders prioritize clean air, public health, and neighbourhood livability by taking swift and transparent action immediately. 

Sincerely,
The undersigned: