89% OF THE PUBLIC SUPPORT THE AQUARIUM REVITALIZATION AND EXPANSION PROPOSAL

Vancouver, BC: The Vancouver Aquarium today announced the results from its recent community consultation and public attitude survey, which show strong support for the Vancouver Aquarium's revitalization and expansion proposal.

Dr. John Nightingale says, "There was excellent public participation in the consultation and very strong support for the Aquarium's revitalization and expansion proposal as well as for the proposed rules governing the acquisition of whales and dolphins."

A variety of consultation methods were used to ensure the broadest possible opportunities for public participation and to allow people to review and discuss the proposal. The consultation included:

- 7 stakeholder meetings

- 5 focus groups

- 600 one-on-one interviews

- 3 public open houses

- an on-line feedback form

- The Vancouver Sun and The Province newspaper inserts

- a public attitude survey

The consultation sought public feedback about design options, the level of support for the Aquarium's proposal, given impacts on Stanley Park, and the rules under which whales and dolphins (cetaceans) can be brought into the Aquarium.

More than 4,000 people participated in the consultation and 3,300 feedback forms were submitted.

Public Consultation Results

The overall consultation results show 89% support for the Aquarium revitalization and expansion proposal (86% of Vancouver residents and 95% of residents in the rest of the GVRD). The following are highlights from the Consultation Summary Report:

• Use of Additional Land - Overall, 80% agree with using additional park space for the revitalization and expansion, with 79% of Vancouver residents agreeing, and 88% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agreeing.
• Use of Greenspace - Overall 78% agree with using additional greenspace for the revitalization and expansion, with 77% of Vancouver residents agreeing, and 87% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agreeing.
• Tree Removal & Replacement - Overall 74% agree with the removal and replacement of 32 trees to accommodate the Aquarium expansion, with 71% of Vancouver residents agreeing and 83% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agreeing.
• Aquarium Building - The public was asked to select a preference from two options for the Aquarium building entrance. Overall 51% prefer the partially screened facade with foliage that would more readily blend into Stanley Park (52% of Vancouver residents and residents in the rest of the GVRD agreeing). Overall, 36% preferred the contemporary glass facade option that would have a larger presence in Stanley Park.
• Rules Governing Whales & Dolphins - The public was asked to provide feedback on five questions regarding the rules governing whales and dolphins. Detailed results are contained in the Consultation Summary Report available at www.vanaqua.org. Highlights include:

- Overall 77% agree that the Aquarium should be allowed to bring a new whale or dolphin into its facility if it was recently injured or otherwise in distress and needing rehabilitation or assistance to survive, with the intention of safely releasing it back into the wild (77% of Vancouver residents agree and 83% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree).

- Overall 73% agree that the Aquarium should be allowed to bring a new whale or dolphin into its facility, possibly from another organization, if it was injured or otherwise in distress at any time in the past and requires permanent human care to survive, with no intention of releasing it back into the wild (72% of Vancouver residents agree and 79% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree).

Public Attitude Survey Results

Overall, the public attitude survey results showed 82% support the Aquarium's revitalization and expansion proposal (74% support by Vancouver residents and 85% support by residents in the rest of the GVRD). Other attitude survey results include:

• Use of Additional Land - Overall, 61% agree with using additional park space for the revitalization and expansion, while 16% disagree and 22% have no opinion. 54% of Vancouver residents agree and 64% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree.
• Use of Greenspace - Overall, 55% agree with using additional greenspace for the revitalization and expansion while 20% disagree and 25% have no opinion. 47% of Vancouver residents agree and 59% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree.
• Tree Removal & Replacement - Overall 63% agree with the removal and replacement of 32 trees to accommodate the Aquarium expansion, while 26% disagree and 10% have no opinion. 51% of Vancouver residents agree and 68% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree.
• Aquarium Building - The public was asked to select a preference from two options for the Aquarium building entrance. Overall 58% prefer the partially screened facade with foliage that would more readily blend into Stanley Park (52% of Vancouver residents preferred this option and 60% of residents in the rest of the GVRD preferred this option).
• Rules Governing Whales & Dolphins - The public was asked to provide feeback on five questions regarding the rules governing whales and dolphins. Detailed results are contained in the public attitude survey report. Highlights include:

- Overall 90% agree that the Aquarium should be allowed to bring a new whale or dolphin into its facility if it was recently injured or otherwise in distress and needing rehabilitation or assistance to survive, with the intention of safely releasing it back into the wild (88% of Vancouver residents agree and 90% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree).

-Overall 75% agree that the Aquarium should be allowed to bring a new whale or dolphin into its facility, possibly from another organization, if it was injured or otherwise in distress at any time in the past and requires permanent human care to survive, with no intention of releasing it back into the wild (76% of Vancouver residents agree and 75% of residents in the rest of the GVRD agree).

The public attitude survey was conducted by Synovate between October 2 and 12, 2006 with 600 randomly selected telephone interviews. 300 telephone interviews were conducted with City of Vancouver residents and with 300 residents in the rest of the GVRD.

All consultation input was independently verified and analyzed by Synovate, an independent and internationally recognized market research firm.

The Park Board and the public received the Consultation Summary Report today. The Vancouver Aquarium will formally present these results with the full Consultation Summary Report to the Vancouver Park Board on November 27.

About the Proposal

The Vancouver Aquarium is proposing a revitalization and expansion of the Aquarium to improve animal and public spaces. The Aquarium sought community input on design options, the level of support for the Aquarium's proposal given the impacts on Stanley Park, and the rules under which whales and dolphins (cetaceans) can be brought into the Aquarium.

The Vancouver Aquarium is a non-profit organization. Its mission is to effect the conservation of aquatic life through display and interpretation, education, research and direct action.

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Full Consultation Summary Report (www.aquariumconsultation.ca)

Attitude Survey Results (www.aquariumconsultation.ca)

For more information:

Brenda Jones, Manager of Public Relations, Vancouver Aquarium

Tel: 604-659-3516 Email: Brenda.jones@vanaqua.org Web: www.vanaqua.org

or

David Rink, Vice President, Synovate

Tel: 604-664-2400