Ecology Ottawa

News Clippings

NOTEBOOK: LRT open houses, pedestrian safety upgrades, more

StittsvilleCentral.ca

By Glen Gower, StittsvilleCentral, March 19, 2017

LRT OPEN HOUSES

Watch for a open house events in June and November for updates on plans to extend light rail transit west past Moodie Drive towards Kanata and Stittsville. Kanata North Councillor Marianne Wilkinson shared the news in a newsletter update: “An evaluation of alternative corridors and selection of a preferred corridor and station locations will be discussed… on the technically preferred plan, which will go to Transportation Committee and Council for approval in March 2018. Construction of this section cannot occur until after the LRT reaches Moodie in 2023 and a funding source is obtained.”

WALK THIS WAY

Three pedestrian infrastructure projects of note:

Traces of Earth's original crust found in Canadian Shield - Technology & Science - CBC News

By Nicole Mortillaro, CBC News Ottawa, March 19, 2017

Researchers have found traces of Earth's crust in the Canadian Shield dating back 4.2 billion years, when our planet was in its infancy.

Earth's composition is unlike any other known planet or moon, with rocky crusts forming and moving over the surface. Over time, this has forced older evidence of such crusts — both oceanic and continental — deep below the surface.

'We have a problem': Labour council worries about safety at LRT construction sites - Ottawa - CBC News

By Robyn Miller, CBC News Ottawa, March 19, 2017

The president of the Ottawa and District Labour Council said he is worried about safety at LRT construction sites after a worker was injured on Saturday – the second reported LRT workplace injury in seven days.

On Saturday afternoon, emergency crews were called to the site at the corner of Queen and Kent streets in Ottawa after reports a worker had been "severely injured," according to Ottawa Fire Services

Kanata North taxpayers winning war on mosquitos

Ottawa Citizen

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen, March 19, 2017

Kanata North’s war on mosquitos seems to be paying off.

That’s good news for residents shelling out more money for the unique anti-mosquito program as another year of bug-attacking treatments is just around the corner.

To carry out the assault on mosquitos in Kanata North, the city has hired the company GDG Environnement to lead the aerial attack with a helicopter and a ground offensive on specific sites. GDG will be gearing up for its 2017 campaign as the snow melts.

Second one-day STO strike set for Tuesday

Ottawa Citizen

By the Ottawa Citizen, March 19, 2017

Commuters in Gatineau and the rest of the Outaouais face the prospect of finding alternate transportation on Tuesday when drivers and mechanics for the Société du transport de l’Outaouais plan to hold their second one-day strike in as many weeks.

The STO said the union informed the transit company of the action on Sunday night. Last week’s strike, on Thursday, delayed thousands of commuters and slowed traffic on both sides of the river.

Mayor Watson annoyed loophole isn't closed for Quebec red-light runners

Ottawa

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Sun, March 18, 2017

Mayor Jim Watson wants city management to explain why Quebec motorists are still escaping fines when they’re caught by Ottawa’s red-light cameras.

“I’m a little frustrated and annoyed this has taken so long,” Watson said Saturday.

Watson said he sent a note to city manager Steve Kanellakos once he saw Postmedia’s story about the estimated 5,700 Quebec-plated vehicles not getting tickets after they were caught by red-light cameras in 2016.

UPDATE: City will appeal MOE decision on Carp landfill service area

StittsvilleCentral.ca

By Staff, StittsvilleCentral, March 17, 2017

City of Ottawa solicitor Rick O’Connor recommended that city staff appeal a Ministry of Environment decision to allow the Carp landfill to accept waste from Western Quebec.

The memo was circulated to media outlets yesterday, and Councillor Shad Qadri confirmed on Facebook that the city would be moving forward with an appeal.

Ottawa woman aiming to open zero-waste grocery store

Metro Ottawa

By Ryan Tumilty, Ottawa Metro News, March 15, 2017

Valerie Leloup is trying to solve a problem that has vexed civilizations for centuries: How do you sell spaghetti sauce in bulk?

This summer Leloup is hoping to launch a new downtown grocery store, named Nu Grocery, that would be a zero-waste establishment. The store would sell items in bulk or in re-usable containers

.“It’s a store where you can find almost all of your daily grocery needs, and the primary benefit is that you don’t create any packaging waste,” Leloup said. “My intention is really to find a solution for every need that we have, so I also want to sell products that are not usually available in bulk.”

Data drove placement of 20 new red-light cameras, city says

Metro Ottawa

By Ryan Tumilty, Ottawa Metro News, March 15, 2017

The city let data drive its decision making in the placing of 20 new red-light cameras that will be put up across the city this year.

The new locations were announced on Monday, bringing the total number of cameras in the city to 54.

Krista Tanaka, program manger of road safety and traffic investigations, said they initially looked for place s where there had been three or more angle collisions in a given year. They then expanded that list to any intersections with five or more angle collisions involving vehicles heading in the same direction over the last several years.

(...)Tanaka said cyclists are counted in the vehicle tallies, so any intersections where cyclists and cars collide at right angles would have been captured in their search.

She said while pedestrians would not have been captured in the same hunt, they also don’t see many pedestrian collisions where red-light running is the major factor.

Beware – LRT is going to increase your property taxes

Ottawa Citizen

By Alex Cullen, Ottawa Citizen, March 17, 2017

The Toronto Real Estate Board recently published a report extolling the virtues of GO Transit expansion in the Greater Toronto Area, citing rising property values as proof.

There is a lesson here for Ottawa residents: be careful of what you wish for. The expansion of Ottawa’s Light Rail Transit (LRT) plan will likely lead to increased property values along its corridor, particularly as the city increases development potential (and density) to support its LRT plan.

And increased property values lead directly to increased property taxes for those lucky people living in that corridor, as property assessment is based on property values.

Your letters: Religions coming together, red light cams, Para Transpo

Ottawa Citizen

By Leona Fahrig, Ottawa Citizen Letter to the Editor, March 17, 2017

The City of Ottawa has investments in large oil, gas and coal companies. Around the globe, fossil fuels are inevitably being replaced by cleaner renewable energy.

So why will city officials not seriously consider the risk inherent in the city’s endowment fund investments in fossil fuels? This is a question all taxpayers and municipal voters should be asking.

An analysis of these investments by the group 350 Ottawa indicates that over the nine years since inception of the endowment fund in 2007, returns have been between $6 million and $13 million less than they would have been without the holdings in oil, gas and coal.

Gatineau Mayor says he was elected based on plan to connect Ottawa, Gatineau

By Jennifer McIntosh, Ottawa Community News, March 16, 2017

Any future light rail plans must consider Gatineau, said the city’s Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin.

While Ottawa formally voted on entering into discussions around the Prince of Wales Bridge on March 8, discussions have been going on behind the scenes for quite some time, Pedneaud-Jobin said.

“One of the first conversations I had with Mayor (Jim) Watson after he was elected was about public transit,” he said.