Ecology Ottawa

News Clippings

City seeks more active role in financing Stage 2 LRT

Metro Ottawa

By Kieran Delamont, Ottawa Metro News, August 30, 2017

City staff have issued a report to council providing an update on the status of the Stage 2 LRT project.

The report details further information about the plans to opt for 2.5 km of rail (rather than bus rapid transit) between Moodie’s Bay and Bayshore stations in Kanata and the extension of the Trillium line further south to Limebank Road, as well as outlining a revised approach to financing the $3.6-billion project.

City manager Steve Kanellakos, in a memo sent to members of council, noted that the report focuses on three areas: the continued design work being done to shore up the extent of Stage 2 LRT projects, long-term debt-cost avoidance, and minor changes to the project governance.

Ottawa student's recycling app a success

Metro Ottawa

By Alex Abdelwahab, Ottawa Metro News, August 30, 2017

When Edward Ren's laptop died this past winter while trying to finish a final project, he wanted to know how he could dispose of it responsibly.

After some online research, he realized that stores that sell electronics are also required by law to take them back and recycle them. He figured a lot of people probably didn't know this information and maybe he could turn it into an app.

"If I could make an app, I could a) display all the locations in Canada, b) also make it easy to get there, like provide in-app navigational tools that could help a lot of people like me in that situation," he said.

Water use restrictions to begin Friday in Aylmer, Hull sectors - Ottawa - CBC News

By CBC News Ottawa, August 30, 2017

Residents in Gatineau's Hull and Aylmer sectors are being asked to conserve water as the city upgrades its water treatment plant over the next few months.

Starting Sept. 1, people living in the two sectors will be under a "mechanical watering ban" — in other words, any form of watering that doesn't involve a person holding a hose is prohibited, the City of Gatineau said in a statement Wednesday.

Inspectors will be patrolling the two sectors "day and night," the city said, and violators could face fines of $200 plus administrative fees.

Denley: When we all drive electric, government loses big time

Ottawa Citizen

By Randall Denley, Ottawa Citizen, August 30, 2017

To listen to them talk, our federal and Ontario governments can’t wait for the planet-saving electric car future to get here. They are so keen that they are subsidizing electric cars and even building a network of charging stations for them.

What we don’t hear about is the huge effect on federal and provincial revenues if the government’s rhetoric becomes reality and people turn to electric cars in large numbers. A big reduction in gas tax would seriously affect Canada’s ability to pay for roads but it would also undermine a top source of transit dollars.

Federal and provincial governments will collect $23.5 billion in gasoline and diesel taxes this year, according to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. In addition, they will take in nearly $1.8 billion in sales taxes.

Eligible Ontario homeowners to get smart thermostats under new program

Ottawa Citizen

By Allison Jones, Ottawa Citizen, August 30, 2017

TORONTO — Eligible Ontario households will be able to get smart thermostats for free on a first-come, first-served basis under a new government program.

Environment Minister Chris Ballard announced Wednesday that $377 million in proceeds from Ontario’s cap-and-trade auctions this year will be used to establish a Green Ontario Fund. That not-for-profit provincial agency will oversee programs and rebates for homes and businesses to reduce energy costs.

Part of that will be the GreenON Installations program, under which eligible households can register to have a technician visit and install a smart thermostat at no cost. There will be 100,000 smart thermostats available under the program to people who register through the Green Ontario Fund website.

Science of (late) summer: Why it suddenly feels like fall

Ottawa & Region

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By Tom Spears, Ottawa Sun, August 28, 2017

Only twice a year — the start of spring and the start of fall — does the change of season happen so quickly.

And the changing position of the sun in our sky is the reason.We’re now losing more than three minutes of daylight every day, a major shift since the beginning of summer when the daily change was only a few seconds.

StittsvilleCentral.ca

By StittsvilleCentral, August 28, 2017

Starting Sunday, September 3, OC Transpo will introduce new route numbers for several routes as part of getting Ready for Rail and the opening of the O-Train Confederation Line in 2018.

Other fall service changes include adjusted schedules to reflect the higher demand for service as customers return to work and school.Customers should visit octranspo.com and use the travel planner to see if their regular trips are affected. Continue reading →

"No Swim" advisories at Ottawa beaches way up in 2017

Metro Ottawa

By Alex Abdelwahab, Ottawa Metro News, August 28, 2017

It's a wrap on beach season in Ottawa, after a summer filled with "no swim" advisories.

According to information provided by Ottawa Public Health, each of the cities beaches had more "no swim" days than in the previous four years.

Ottawa Public Health conducts daily testing of water quality at Ottawa's beaches throughout the swim season and issues "no swim" advisories if bacteria levels are over 200 E. coli per 100 millilitres of water tested for one day; or if bacteria levels are over 100 E. coli per 100 ml of water tested on two or more consecutive days.

You going to eat that? Ottawa group gets grant to combat food waste - Ottawa - CBC News

By CBC News Ottawa, August 29, 2017

If your banana is a bit brown or your lettuce is a little limp, an Ottawa organization wants you to think twice before you throw out your food.

Foodsharing Ottawa works with residents, grocery stores and other food sellers to promote sharing food that's still edible to prevent it from going to waste.

"If you consider that almost half of all the food production gets wasted at some point in the food production cycle, then I think we need to do something about it," said founder Carolin Ross on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning.

Reevely: Flood-proofing Ottawa won’t be cheap

Ottawa Citizen

By David Reevely, Ottawa Citizen, August 28, 2017

Cleaning up the messes from last spring’s floods here is costing millions of dollars, which gives us a clue to just how expensive it will be to prepare Ottawa for decades of more severe weather than we’ve been used to.

Land-use planners typically plan construction and drainage to withstand once-in-a-century water. They painstakingly map out the floodplains around rivers and nobody’s supposed to build on them. Ottawa’s spring inundation was a trifle compared with what’s happening in Houston, roughly a once-in-50-years flood rather than the 500-year flood Texas is facing. But cities like Ottawa have old neighbourhoods we didn’t build to modern standards or with modern data. Parts of New Edinburgh and Old Ottawa South would be underwater in 100-year floods. So would most of Constance Bay.

Ottawa LRT inspection reports paint picture of a work in progress

Ottawa Citizen

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen, August 29, 2017

Dozens of inspection reports documenting deficiencies, such as bad welds and crummy workmanship, illustrate the quality control in effect during the construction of Ottawa’s LRT line.

The Citizen reviewed 64 “non-conformance” reports produced during audits of construction along the LRT line. The city sent the documents to researcher Ken Rubin after he made an access-to-information request for all reports produced in 2015 and 2016. He is still seeking more records.

Such reports are common in the construction industry as builders’ work is inspected to ensure its quality.

City hoping Pinecrest homes and businesses will manage their rainwater

Metro Ottawa

By Alex Abdelwahab, Ottawa Metro News, August 27, 2017The City of Ottawa is hoping more homeowners and businesses in the Pinecrest area will consider installing rain gardens and rain barrels on their property.

This past weekend, they set up a booth at Westboro Fuse to encourage residents to get involved in the Pinecrest Neighbourhood Rain Project.

The project, which is part of a larger 50-year-plan to improve the health of the Pinecrest Creek, minimize flooding risks, and also reduce closures of Westboro Beach, is being run as a two-year pilot.