A Maple Ridge elementary school can expect upgrades to their heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems after receiving new money from the province.
The Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows School District will be receiving a total of $1,463,000 – part from the School Enhancement Program and part from the Carbon Neutral Capital Program – for HVAC upgrades at Whonnock Elementary.
The announcement was made Wednesday, March 15, and the money was part of a $261.1 million provincial investment in 2023/24 maintenance projects, including $41 million to upgrade HVAC systems at 101 schools throughout B.C.
In other districts the province provided $13 million towards the purchase of at least 67 new school buses, and additional funding is being made available through the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation for school districts to buy electric buses – in support of the province’s CleanBC targets to reduce greenhouse gas, or GHG, emissions by 40 per cent by 2030 for vehicle fleets at public-sector organizations.
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“We are making historic investments in school capital projects across the province,” said Rachna Singh, Minister of Education.
“Schools are the cornerstones of our communities, and our government is continuing to invest in our school infrastructure to ensure that our kids have clean, safe, modern places to learn, grow and play.”
The province also announced that it will be providing $23 million in 2023-24 from the Ministry of Education and Child Care’s Carbon Neutral Capital Program to support energy and electrical upgrades at 86 schools. The Carbon Neutral Capital Program, provides specific funding to energy-efficiency projects that lower school districts’ carbon emissions.
And, to ensure school districts have access to flexible maintenance funding if repairs or issues arise throughout the year, the province is increasing the annual facility grant by an additional $26.6 million.
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