Mayor announces Live Green Toronto - a five-year program to inspire and support neighbourhood action
Mayor announces Live Green Toronto - a five-year program to inspire and support neighbourhood actions for a greener Toronto
Mayor David Miller joined thousands of Torontonians at the Green Toronto Festival today to announce the launch of Live Green Toronto - a major five-year, $20-million dollar program to promote and support neighbourhood and community-based actions to reduce emissions, clean our air and protect our climate.
Live Green Toronto will take action on climate change to a whole new level in Toronto once again making us a world-leading city on climate change, said Mayor Miller. The program provides the support, funding and expertise needed for grassroots community-based actions to cut greenhouse gases and clean our air. It is unique in that it will provide Torontonians with the opportunity to turn their great green ideas into action, resulting in the greening of our neighbourhoods and communities making Toronto the most liveable city it can be.
Wind power has huge potential as a clean energy source in Ontario. Carefully planned wind development, combined with other renewable sources like hydro, solar and biomass, can help Ontario go a long way toward replacing dirty coal power. A coalition of wind power developers in Ontario has developed a new website, isupportwindpower.com, to demonstrate that people across Ontario are keen to tap into the power blowing in the wind. If you think wind power should be a significant part of Ontario’s energy mix, we encourage you to visit the site and register your support.
(southeast corner of St. Clair and Wychwood – enter off Wychwood)
7:00 pm Discussion of Green Neighbours 21 projects and how you can get involved.
8:00 pm The New Energy Reality
Randy Park, a professional speaker, author, and chair of Post Carbon Toronto, will explain why oil is $110 per barrel, where it might be going (in price and supply), and what you need to do to prepare your life for the new energy reality.
Weather swings reap havoc on buildings and infrastructure
Climate Chaos is creating new challenges to Canadian infrastructure and buildings. Canada’s weather requires unique material elasticity for buildings, but historically when winter arrived, it stayed. With the winter weather swings in Toronto this year, heavy snowfalls have been followed by mid-winter thaws. Our roofs, walls and foundations can be severely impacted by freezing and thawing water. The magical element that takes so many different natural forms can heave sidewalks, penetrate roofs, and cause significant damage. With increasingly erratic winter weather, come costly implications for homeowners.
Renovating is costly, but there are grants available from the Federal and Provincial governments. If you are renovating, you should be taking advantage of incentive programs including ecoEnergy. As much as 10,000 dollars in grants are available for energy retrofits and green home improvements ranging from high efficiency furnace replacement to caulking and sealing the air leaks in your home.
Part 5: the Yin of Energy Consumption and Yang of Solar Power
From Laptops to Baseboard Heaters
I can’t think of a single room in my house that is not alive with the hum of power consumption. Even my little clock radio is drawing a constant charge, while my refrigerator is constantly fighting to keep the food cold. Hair dryers, clothes dryers, baseboard heaters, TVs, cell phone chargers, toothbrushes, and computers are drawing a constant flow of electricity from the grid. Somewhere at the end of the wires attached to your house is a hard working power facility which may include Hydro, and Wind, but likely includes Nuclear and Coal.
Lighting the Way to Future Friendly Housing
The era of Halogen pot lights has passed. There is a lot of interest and promise in emerging LED lighting and compact fluorescent lighting as the new standard. When I walk through old houses with 100 amp service I advise my clients not to be concerned about the capacity. Lighting and appliance loads are reducing. There are Compaq Fluorescent Lighting retrofits for halogen lights but technology is not the only answer to lighting challenges.
Global Warming is on every channel and is the new buzz word wherever you turn. When looking for answers to Global Warming issues we must look at our use of electricity and where it comes from. Are we doing all we can and what are the best choices when looking for energy sources in our Province, our Country and in our own back yard?
“This budget marks a turning point,” said Taylor. “It overturns the notion that you have to choose either a healthy environment or a strong economy. It will help keep British Columbia vibrant and growing, it takes a big step toward meeting the challenge of climate change, and it strengthens key public services like health care and education.”
It’s Not Nice to Let Eastern Canadians Freeze in the Dark
Strategic Petroleum Reserves
It’s Not Nice to Let Eastern Canadians Freeze in the Dark
GORDON LAXER
It is time for Canada to urgently join all other industrial countries in establishing strategic petroleum. It is irresponsible to let Eastern Canadians freeze in the dark.
Gordon Laxer is director and co-founder of the Parkland Institute, and author of Freezing in the Dark: Why Canada Needs Strategic Petroleum Reserves.
MCGUINTY GOVERNMENT INVESTS IN RENEWABLE ENERGY
New Program Turns Greenhouse Gases From Farms Into Clean Energy
STIRLING - The McGuinty government is launching a new program that will help farmers and rural businesses develop and build systems that turn farm waste into clean energy.
“Developing renewable energy resources in the agri-food and rural sectors is an important part of the government’s climate change initiative,” said Leona Dombrowsky, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “It is also an opportunity to support rural economic development and partnerships.”
The $9 million Ontario Biogas Systems Financial Assistance Program, launched today by the McGuinty government, will help farmers and rural businesses carry out feasibility studies for the installation of biogas systems as well as cover a proportion of construction and implementation costs. Applicants can receive up to $400,000 in funding.
Solar braised beef cheeks w/ an heirloom tomato-parmesan-thyme bread pudding, basil seedlings and a Henry of Pelham Baco Noir braising jus reduction
Beef cheeks are inexpensive, tender, and succulent when braised, and the constant cud chewing motion of the cow lends them a deep savoury flavour.
You can buy this often neglected cut from your local butcher, or ask a beef purveyor at one of our great farmers markets to bring you some cheeks on his next trip. To keep this dish completely local, try Montfort Dairy’s parmesan style cheese for the bread pudding, you can find them at the Brickworks Farmers Market on Saturday mornings.
TORONTO A $150 million investment will help Ontario homeowners fight climate change, conserve energy and adopt green technologies, Premier McGuinty announced today.
“Ontarians know that fighting climate change presents a huge opportunity to save money and energy, right at home,” said Premier Dalton McGuinty.
“Since 2003, we’ve been taking steps to fight climate change by making historic investments in renewable energy sources like solar and wind. The next step in our plan will help people fight climate change at home by giving them the tools they need to save energy, save money and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.”
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