Ecology Ottawa

News Clippings

Pollination project creates a buzz in Hawkesbury

By James Morgan, The Review, June 29, 2020

The Town of Hawkesbury is trying to attract bees. Wildflowers have been planted on part of the lawn in front of the municipal garage on Main Street East in an effort to improve the habitat for honeybees and other pollinating insects.  The total cost of the project is $600 but the taxpayers are not going to be stung for it.  Each member of town council has contributed out of their own pocket to the effort.

“Hawkesbury needs to start many green initiatives and we have some land that can be used for that,” said Mayor Paula Assaly.

https://thereview.ca/2020/06/29/pollination-project-creates-a-buzz-in-hawkesbury/

Rideshare service Facedrive drives into Ottawa on Canada Day

By Josh Pringle, CTV News Ottawa, July 1, 2020

OTTAWA -- Ottawa residents have a new ride-sharing option to call for a lift on Canada Day.

Facedrive announced Wednesday morning that it has launched its ridesharing services in the nation's capital. Riders can choose between electric, hybrid or gas-powered vehicles when ordering a trip through the Facedrive platform.

Facedrive says it's "Canada's first peer-to-peer, eco-friendly and socially responsible ridesharing network."  

"We are delighted to be launching Facedrive in the national capital region on Canada Day, said Suman Pushparajah, Chief Operating Officer of Facedrive.

New transit execs face monumental task for LRT upgrade

By Bruce Deachman and Joanne Laucius, Ottawa Citizen, July 2, 2020

Nicolas Truchon and Mario Guerra face the monumental task of ensuring that Ottawa’s transit riders don’t have to go through what city transportation general manager John Manconi describes as “another winter of hell.”

The beleaguered Rideau Transit Group announced on Tuesday that Truchon would take over chief executive duties as of July 10, while Guerra will take over as head of Rideau Transit Maintenance, the RTG affiliate responsible for maintaining the city’s $2.1 billion LRT system, on the same date.

(...)Manconi’s hellish comment two weeks ago underscores the numerous problems that have plagued Ottawa’s LRT since its launch last fall.

The city hasn’t made maintenance payments to RTG since an initial $5.1-million transfer, mostly for the company’s performance last September when the 12.5-kilometre LRT line opened.

Rideau Transit names CEO to replace Peter Lauch

By CBC News Ottawa, June 30, 2020

Rideau Transit Group — the consortium that built Ottawa's Confederation light rail train line — has appointed an executive to take over as CEO next month, the company said in a news release Tuesday.

Nicolas Truchon takes over the new role from Peter Lauch on July 10. Truchon has more than 20 years of experience leading and operating public-private partnerships (P3s) like the one which built and now maintain's Ottawa's light-rail system, the company said.

That includes working for ACS Infrastructure as chief financial officer for the Samuel-de-Champlain Bridge P3 in Montreal. The $4.47-billion, 3.4-kilometre span over the St. Lawrence River was completed last year.

The consortium also announced the appointment of Mario Guerra as the new CEO in charge of Rideau Transit Maintenance, the company that maintains the new Confederation Line.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/new-ceo-rideau-transit-group-1.5633589?ref=mobilerss&cmp=newsletter_CBC%20Ottawa_727_44782

How COVID-19 could alter the course of climate change

By Tom Spears, Ottawa Citizen, June 10, 2020 (appears in the Citizen on June 27)

The emissions that cause climate change have fallen off globally during pandemic lockdowns, and experts are asking whether our response to COVID-19 will bring long-term changes that help the climate.

This year, the world is forecast to have a dip of five to eight per cent in greenhouse gas emissions. It’s nice, but at some point, we all return to work. And then what?

(...)“We’re seeing that COVID is leading to these huge temporary emissions reductions, especially in countries or cities with large industries” such as China, says Robb Barnes, executive director of Ecology Ottawa.

(...)

While he’s not happy about Ottawa’s expanding urban boundary, he hopes that communities could grow up outside central Ottawa where people can have homes and jobs close together rather than commuting long distances.

And as we try to re-start the economy, he says “there are all kinds of ideas about a green recovery, ensuring that we’re financing renewable energies and not propping up the old industries” of oil, gas and auto makers.

Township of North Glengarry seeks public input on new bylaw which would require permits before certain clear-cutting projects

By Reid Masson, The Review, June 22, 2020

The Township of Glengarry is taking the region’s first crack at finding the middle ground in the contentious issue of clear-cutting and is seeking the public’s input on a proposed bylaw which would require permits to be issued before any large land clearing projects are undertaken.

Glengarry is the first area municipality to release a draft version of a bylaw to regulate the clear-cutting of trees and is seeking the public’s input by July 1. The draft Clear Cutting By-law applies to the clear-cutting of trees in areas greater than one hectare (2.5 acres). If passed, applicants will be required to submit an application along with a fee of $50 per acre up to a maximum of $500 per clear-cutting.

Clear-cutting is a contentious issue within the township and the region and the proposed bylaw is aimed at finding middle ground between those who support clear-cutting and those who would like to see the practice stopped entirely, said Jacob Rheaume, Director of Building, Bylaw and Planning for the Township of North Glengarry. The bylaw will also provide the township with awareness of planned projects and should alleviate some of the historical issues caused by unregulated clear-cutting in the municipality.

https://thereview.ca/2020/06/22/133196/

Bury and Sears: Ottawa should do much better at waste diversion

By Duncan Bury and Meg Sears, Ottawa Citizen, June 24, 2020

COVID-19 notwithstanding, Ottawans’ garbage, paper, plastics, glass, cans and organic waste continue to vanish from the curbside and apartment garbage rooms. Very few of us know or perhaps care about where it all goes, especially with worries over more important things such as our health and financial security.

But care we must. Waste management is an essential service with health, climate, financial and resource efficiency implications that impact us all. What happens to the 362 kilograms of residential waste that, on average, each of us generate per year? This is important; Ottawa households threw out 340,000 tonnes in 2019.

Last year, the city initiated a long-anticipated, sorely needed Solid Waste Master Plan (SWMP) process to guide policies and programs over the next 30 years. Despite COVID-19 challenges to public consultation, the Plan’s Phase 1 studies and a survey seeking public input can all be found on the city’s Engage Ottawa website.

Retail politics: Glebe business association turfs Coun. Menard from the board

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen, June 25, 2020

The association representing businesses in the Glebe has made the extraordinary decision to turf its local councillor from the board and ask city council for a replacement representative.

The Glebe BIA’s decision Wednesday night came after Capital Coun. Shawn Menard throughout the spring strongly advocated for the removal of some street parking on Bank Street in favour of more space for pedestrians and cyclists during the COVID-19 pandemic.

(...)“This decision by the BIA came as a surprise to me,” Menard said in an emailed statement Thursday.

“Since entering office 19 months ago we have been promoting small local businesses in our newsletters, posting resources for businesses on our website, helping to secure a gateway sign to this area, adding more bike racks on Bank Street, helping to get planters fixed, adding public bathrooms, providing assistance to those who are house-less in this area, and by attempting to implement pedestrian and bicyclist friendly policies that have been shown to not only benefit residents, but also bolster businesses’ bottom lines.”

Glebe BIA seeks to turf local councillor over 'adversarial approach'

By Hillary Johnstone, CBC News Ottawa, June 25, 2020

In a highly unusual move, the Glebe BIA is asking Ottawa city council to remove the area councillor from its board of directors, explaining that the current arrangement is "not working in the best interests" of its members.

Capital ward Coun. Shawn Menard was appointed by council 19 months ago to sit on the Glebe BIA's board of directors. All business improvement area boards must have at least one member appointed by the municipality.

"There was agreement amongst the board that we need more consistent reporting from the city and a more fulsome commitment to our organization," the Glebe BIA said in a statement issued Wednesday.

"The current arrangement was not working in the best interests of our members."

The BIA said it will now ask city council to remove Menard and appoint a new delegate to the board to act as a liaison between the BIA and the city. 

Street parking controversy

In an interview with CBC, Menard said he suspected the move was due to his efforts last month to block off some street parking on Bank Street to allow pedestrians and cyclists more room to practise physical distancing, which upset some business owners.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/shawn-menard-steps-remove-glebe-bia-board-1.5626652?ref=mobilerss&cmp=newsletter_CBC%20Ottawa_727_42161

Plugged In: Public fast-charging networks are expanding

By Andrew McCredie, Driving.ca, June 25, 2020

One of the key elements in expanding EV adoption is fast-charging infrastructure, and a number of companies are hard at work setting up stations to create a network that will allow electric vehicles to roam further afield in our vast country. One of the new players in that arena is Electrify Canada, whose parent company Volkswagen has set an ambitious time table for the roll out for a large fleet of all-new, all-electric models. Our guest today is Electrify Canada’s chief operating officer, who will fill us in on Phase 1 of the company’s plans, tell us why public fast-charging networks are important, and offer his views on the growth of the electric vehicle industry in a post-pandemic world.

https://driving.ca/volkswagen/auto-news/news/plugged-in-public-fast-charging-networks-are-expanding

Some ByWard Market streets will close to cars to allow restaurant patios to expand

By Peter Hum, The Citizen, June 24, 2020

Several ByWard Market streets will close as of July 4 to help restaurants on them expand their patios, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson tweeted Wednesday.

Clarence Street will close between William and Dalhousie streets, Watson said. In addition, the northern side of York Street will be closed between Market Square and Sussex Drive, while some of the on-street parking near the Ottawa sign on York Street will be converted to patio space. The street closures will remain in force until the end of patio season, Watson tweeted.

Transit commissioners feeling optimistic with change of leadership at LRT consortium

By Ted Raymond, CTV News Ottawa, June 23, 2020

OTTAWA -- The chair of Ottawa's transit commission says he is feeling more optimistic now than he was before, upon hearing the CEO of the consortium that built and maintains the Confederation Line is stepping down.

Rideau Transit Group (RTG) announced Monday that Peter Lauch would step down as CEO of both RTG and its maintenance branch, Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) effective July 10, 2020.

His departure comes at a time when the entire Confederation Line is closed for extensive maintenance to rectify issues that have troubled the line since shortly after its launch nine months ago.

(...)Hubley would not say there was a failure of leadership at RTG, but admitted he's got a better outlook for the future.

"Let's put it this way: I'm a little more optimistic today than I was yesterday," he said. "Change is always good and I look forward to more progress on this because our riders have been more than patient. It's time to get this done."

(...)Councillors open to months-long closure