The City of Richmond is considering banning personal electronic aircrafts, such as drones, from operating within city parks and school grounds.
The ban is a result of the city updating its 15 year-old parks and school grounds regulation bylaw. The bylaw goes to council for approval April 13.
The bylaw would also ban drones from the dyke trail, although not from provincial land immediately adjacent to it.
The existing bylaw — from 2000 — only bans gas-powered personal aircrafts, and was considered by city planners to be out of date. Now, the bylaw reads that a person may not "fly a radio or fixed-line controlled or power-launched model aircraft." (Click here to see the full report)
“Since that time, there have been considerable changes in technology and practices related to sports, recreation and leisure activities. Consequently, many provisions of the existing bylaw have become obsolete, fail to adequately address public safety issues or maintain the environmental, recreational and social benefits of public parks and school grounds,” stated a report from Marie Fenwick, Richmond’s manager of parks programs.
Fenwick said residents can apply for an exemption in certain circumstances. Also, the bylaw does not prohibit city council from establishing a park where drones may be operated.
Fenwick could not say if the city had recieved any complaints about drone use in parks or on trails.
The new bylaw is also expected to usher in new environmental provisions, such as regulations on the planting and disposal of invasive plants.
City workers, school board staff and police officers are exempt from the bylaw’s prohibitions.
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The following video shows a drone flying over Steveston:
