Dr. Lynda Lukasik, one of the founding members of Environment Hamilton, and the coordinator of several of our programs in 2002-2004 period, is returning to EH in mid-March as our executive director.

Lynda developed our Pipewatch and Stackwatch programs as well as leading our project to monitor Hamilton Harbour and our People Powered Planning project. She is a past president of the Bay Area Restoration Council and a vice-chair of Friends of Red Hill Valley. Lynda has spent the last two years working in the offices of the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. She’s a past winner of the Environmentalist of the Year Award in Hamilton and has a doctorate in planning. She will definitely be a major addition to a growing team of full-time and part-time EH staff and volunteers.

Index

Hamilton is facing the possibility of two new incinerators – a private one to gasify sewage sludge and waste wood, and a public one to burn municipal garbage that can’t currently be recycled or composted. Whether these are good ideas is the topic being addressed at the EH annual general meeting on March 8.

Our guest speaker is John Jackson, the coordinator of the Citizens Network on Waste Management, and a board member of Great Lakes United for 25 years, including six as president. He has taught waste management at Trent University for more than a decade and is being honoured in April by the mayors of Kitchener and Waterloo at their annual mayors’ dinner “for almost 30 years as a dedicated environmentalist”.

His presentation at our AGM is co-sponsored by the Copps Chair of Urban Studies at McMaster University who also partnered with us on Dr Brian McCarry’s talk on February 15 on air pollution in Hamilton. The AGM is scheduled for 7 pm on Thursday, March 8 at the FRWY Café – a new public space in the former Bank of Montreal building at the corner of King and Wellington Street. We’ll also be providing updates on our projects, door prizes and refreshments.

Index

Environment Hamilton has obtained the rights to show An Inconvenient Truth, the acclaimed documentary by former US vice president Al Gore that dramatically explains the threat of climate change.

Three showings have already taken place this month, and ten more are scheduled before the end of April in various churches in the Hamilton area. The free showings are accompanied by a short introduction by EH staff and volunteers.

They also offer attendees the opportunity to make one or more pledges of personal action to help deal with climate change. These include going car free for a month and using transit or cycling as an alternative, visiting the EH website climate calculator where there are 63 ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, or creating a carpooling network at their place of employment. Smaller steps include making sure at least five more people see the Gore film, or logging their vehicle use for one month and completing a questionnaire on what they learn from the experience. Everyone who attends is also invited to write letters to their elected representatives, and many are doing that even before leaving the showings.

The project is being financially supported by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. You can download a list of the pledges from the EH website.

Index

Heifer International will provide $2000 to support a continuation this summer of the Hamilton Urban Growers program – a community gardening initiative developed last year as part of EH’s Eat Local project.

In 2006 HUG hosted three organic gardening workshops attended by 60 people. It also engaged more than 50 individuals in a garden share program that connected landless gardeners with landowners who were not using their garden space. HUG recruited seven gardening experts to provide assistance to new gardeners and established working partnerships with various groups including the city parks department, the Campaign for Adequate Welfare and Disability Benefits, Simpler Thyme Organic Farm, the Hamilton branch of Canadian Organic Growers, the Hamilton Workers Arts and Heritage Centre, Ecogenesis, and the North Hamilton Community Health Centre.

OPIRG McMaster is also providing funding support for HUG in 2007.

Index

The Environment Hamilton 10-point plan of immediate low cost steps that can be implemented by the city was favourably received at a committee of the whole meeting on February 12 and resulted in several immediate actions including three motions. The first, moved by councillor Merulla, referred the ten points to city staff “for comment and an appropriate report on each individual recommendation”. Merulla called the EH proposal “very reasonable” and went on to say “I think it’s wonderful that we have all of these recommendations put forward collectively so that we can receive a response in a timely manner from staff in order to expedite a number of these issues.”

The second and third motions were moved by councillor McHattie. He asked for an update from staff on the city’s climate change strategy whose outline was presented last August. He also requested that staff provide a draft terms of reference for a follow-up to the peak oil report received by council from Richard Gilbert last April. All three motions were adopted unanimously.

In addition, city staff announced that the February 2008 Upwind Downwind conference will devote one of its two days to climate change. Other southern Ontario municipalities are being invited to present their best practices in addressing climate change at the conference.

Finally, Environment Hamilton was invited formally to participate in planning the conference which is anticipated to include a free evening public session with a guest speaker on climate change. The conference will help fulfill the first recommendation of the 10-point program to investigate the most effective municipal actions to address climate change.

Index

The North End Breezes is a monthly community newspaper distributed free to 4000 homes in and near the North End neighourhood. And each issue contains a one page article written by EH staff. Here’s a link to our March submission prepared by part-time staffer Jarah West

Index

All are welcome to the following EH Events coming up this month, hope to see you there!

• An evening with Ian Thomas – March 6

  

  Hamilton’s famous singer has written a novel – loosely based on the controversy over the Taro landfill application in the mid 1990s. He will be the first guest in a monthly series being organized by Chapman Books. Environment Hamilton is pleased to be a co-sponsor along with the Hamilton and District Labour Council. The start time is 8 pm and the location is the Skydragon Community Centre and Café at 27 King William Street.

• Annual General Meeting – March 8

  The AGM will take place at 7 pm on Thursday, March 8, in the Freeway Coffee House, 333 King Street East, a new gathering spot in downtown Hamilton that has occupied the former Bank of Montreal building on the corner of King and Wellington. Our guest speaker will be John Jackson, one of Ontario’s leading environmental activists who has lectured at Trent University on waste management for over a decade. John will respond to the growing question in Hamilton: “Should we burn our waste?” After shutting down the SWARU incinerator four years ago, there are at least two proposals for similar new facilities in Hamilton – a private one to gasify sewage sludge, and a possible public one to deal with the municipal waste from both Hamilton and Niagara that is not being diverted by our composting and recycling programs. Light refreshments provided.

  

  Thanks to the folks at the Freeway Coffee House for providing us with space for this event.

Index

Nominations open for Board of Directors

Our annual general meeting on March 8 will include elections for the EH Board of Directors. Four of the eight positions are automatically up for election at each AGM and at least two of the incumbent directors have indicated they are not running for re-election.

The deadline for mail in Nominations has passed, however Nominations can also be made from the floor at the AGM.

Index

It’s time to renew your membership for 2007.

If you haven’t already, please consider renewing your EH membership for 2007. Our annual fee remains at $25 for a regular membership and $15 for an unwaged or student member. You can complete the membership form at http://www.environmenthamilton.org/joinus.htm and then mail us a cheque or bring a completed form and payment to any public event of Environment Hamilton such as the March 6 talk with Ian Thomas at the Skydragon Community Centre or the March 8 annual general meeting at the FRWY café.

Index

Over 150 people gathered on February 21 to help plan for food security in Hamilton and to hear guest speaker Wayne Roberts, the coordinator of the Toronto Food Policy Council.

The public event was organized by the Eat Local project of Environment Hamilton, the City of Hamilton Public Health Services, and the Social Planning and Research Council.

The following article appeared in the Ancaster News, Stoney Creek News, Dundas Star and Mountain News:

Think Globally, Eat Locally Homegrown food isn't just the greener choice, it's our 'Plan B' if a crisis strikes, expert says

By:Richard Leitner, (Mar 2, 2007)

'Eating local' not only brings the community together, but helps secure the food supply during times of crisis. Here, members of Fifty United Church peel peaches for pies at last year's Winona Peach Festival.

If Hamiltonians want to do their part to save the planet, Wayne Roberts suggests a good place to start is to put more local food on their plate.

It will not only cut down on the global-warming traffic required to import foods, but may even help avert a future crisis, the food-policy expert says.

While energy and transportation issues dominate debate on climate change, what we eat has a bigger ecological impact, he says. And unlike many other aspects of our lives, food is "an issue that individuals can take direct action on" every day.

"Food is hardly ever mentioned, in terms of the environment, even though agriculture is the most dominant land use in the world and is also the largest single source of global-warming emissions," Mr. Roberts says.

"I may believe in public transportation, but if I live in the outskirts of town and it takes me two hours to get there by public transit and 15 minutes by car, I'm going to take my car, as I think most people will. Your decision about making the right decision on transportation depends on other people making a good decision," he says.

"What makes food powerful is it offers people an opportunity to exercise their own power. They do not have to rely on someone else to make a decision on their behalf."

A former McMaster University professor, Mr. Roberts offered his perspectives on food issues at a public forum in Hamilton last week that drew more than 100 people, many of them advocates for eating locally produced fruits, vegetables and meats.

Popularly cited reasons for "eating local" include that it's fresher, tastier, more environmentally sustainable, fosters community, supports local farmers and protects agricultural land from urban sprawl.

To this Mr. Roberts adds another crucial benefit: it increases our likelihood of surviving a calamity like avian flu that could close borders to food shipments.

With the advent of "just in time" delivery practices, most grocery stores and cities have about a three-days' supply of food, he says.

"The difference between the richest and poorest people in your city is three days," says Mr. Roberts, who now advises the City of Toronto on food policy.

"What if all they say about global warming bringing on drought in the west, which is the greenbelt of the world, is true? And what if two-thirds of the world's fisheries are depleted, which is true, and if we continue at that pace? Do we have a Plan B here?"

Mr. Roberts says most cities, Hamilton and Toronto included, have little ability to weather such crises because they lack "food resilience."

"If nobody in this city or a very small minority of people in this city knows how to turn grain into sprouts, learns how to turn seeds into plants, learns how to turn chick peas that are not in a can into a meal, you are in deep doo-doo if you hit one of these (crisis) points," he says. "If a lot of people know how to do those things, you are not."

Mr. Roberts suggests a number of ways for Hamilton to improve its food resilience, like having the city buy from local farmers, making school and park lands available for community gardens in the summer, and encouraging the use of rooftops for growing fruits and vegetables.

"One-sixth of all cities is flat-roof space," he says. "One-sixth of our cities is there (for use) and it pays for itself in savings in terms of the water that stays on the roof instead of going into the sewage system and combined sewage overflows."

Those attending the forum suggested dozens of ways to promote eating local food, such as:

* developing a label to identify Hamilton-produced food;

* providing more places for farmers to sell their goods;

* using consumer demand to convince grocery stores to buy locally;

* public-awareness campaigns to encourage local food and home gardens.

Brian McHattie, one of three city councillors on hand for the forum, says he agrees Hamilton can do much more to encourage homegrown food, including by setting aside park areas for community gardens and encouraging major public institutions like the city, hospitals, McMaster University and school boards to buy from local farmers.

Councillors are expected to receive a staff report in April on ways to improve Hamilton's food security and achieve the goal of ensuring every resident has access to safe and nutritious food.

Mr. McHattie says the issue's importance is growing because ever-rising oil prices will force changes.

"We're not going to get stuff from California pretty soon, I think, or if we are, it's going to cost tonnes of money," he says.

"From an environmental, economic and social sustainability perspective, the buy local concept, whether it's agriculture or other things, it makes absolute sense."

Mr. McHattie acknowledges developing local food networks presents several challenges, including how to create viable markets for farmers.

"To make that transition's got to be pretty scary. If you're used to selling to a global market, even though it's up and down like crazy in prices, at least you know that there's something there," he says.

"To make that transition there's got to be help for farmers, and if we can't do it financially, we need to lobby at the provincial and federal levels to make it happen because we've got a tonne of agricultural land around Hamilton."

Flamborough Councillor Robert Pasuta, who is hog and grain farmer, agrees buy-local efforts must create a reliable market to be viable -- and require promotion, coordination and more places to sell homegrown food.

Most of his pigs go to Toronto, but he says he'd welcome the chance to sell more locally under the right circumstances.

"I get somebody who wants to buy a half or a quarter of a pig. They want to buy the back part; they don't want to buy the front part. You can't do that. You've got to market the whole thing," Mr. Pasuta says, suggesting any system would require people to order in advance to avoid waste.

"Just to bring to market or bring to the spot and say, 'This is what I've got to sell this week,' I don't think it's going to work. You'll oversell or undersell," he says.

"The concept is great. It's bringing it all together that is going to be the challenge."

Index

Environment Hamilton has helped initiate an environmental project at Woodward Avenue Elementary School where students from a heavily industrialized neighbourhood are eager to become earth keepers. Their new slogan is “Little People are Doing Big Things” as they being positive changes towards minimizing their waste, conserving energy and greening their school.

To help reduce the amount of garbage this school generates, EH staff are taking the students on tours of the Glanbrook landfill site, as well as the recycling and composting depots. This will show the students where their garbage goes and what happens to the green cart and blue box contents. Woodward School now has extra blue boxes and two new green carts for the lunch room.

With the help of corporate donations, we are introducing litterless lunches. Every child will receive a kit that includes a canvas bag and containers for their sandwiches, juice and goodies. In March we will be having an assembly for the entire school to launch this litterless lunch project.

There will be a presentation by the students themselves with pictures they took from their tours, and a demonstration by city and the board of education staff for the green cart and blue box. The author of the children’s book that accompanied the green cart marketing project will also be on hand.

At the end of the assembly, we will bring 40 bags of garbage into the gym to show the students how much garbage this school is generating every month. We will then ask the students “How many bags of garbage can we eliminate?”

To include the rest of this neighbourhood, we will be having a movie night and airing Al Gore’s The Inconvenient Truth for the entire community. We are offering refreshments and door prizes. This event is free and everyone is welcome!

It would be interesting to research the amount of garbage that is generated in this neighbourhood before and after this school project is activated, as well as the change in usage in the green cart and blue bin programs. This information could demonstrate whether this program is making a difference for this community, and if so, by how much!

Near the end of the school year we are planning a festival in the school yard to highlight and celebrate the student’s environmental achievements.

This is an exciting new project for both Environment Hamilton and the school. We also plan to beautify the school with greenery: shrubs, trees, perennials, native plants, and the like. Donations of plants, materials and funding would be greatly appreciated.

Index