Trent U Installs New Permeable Parking Spots, First University In Ontario With Green Parking

Trent University will become the first university in Ontario to install permeable grid paving—an environmental innovation made popular in Europe—when they add about 100 parking spots this summer to their Symons Campus in Peterborough.

The environmentally-friendly parking solution is created using 100% recycled plastic, helping to curb plastic pollution as it does not require the use of asphalt—often a byproduct of the petroleum industry. Similar parking systems are being used in countries around the world, in a variety of settings such as agriculture, parks and industrial spaces.

Photo of Symons Campus courtesy Trent University

“Our campus is growing and we need to balance that growth with our commitment to the environment,” says Kent Stringham, vice-president, Finance and Administration at Trent University. “This innovative and environmental solution to meeting campus demands boasts a number of ecological benefits including the ability to plant grass within the grid, better drainage, and less required road salt in the winter. It’s a win-win for Trent and for our environment.”

HOW PERMEABLE GRID PAVING SYSTEMS WORK

They are installed as a series of recycled plastic interlocking grid on top of land which can then be filled with grass or gravel. The system offers a host of environmental benefits including reduction of flood risk and increased capacity for storm-water management. The permeable parking grids are weather-resistant, can be plowed, and require far less salt in the winter—significantly lessening impact on nearby animal habitats.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF THIS PROJECT

• utilize 35,640 pounds of recycled plastic
• detain 64,627 gallons of stormwater
• save 162.9 tonnes of CO2, the equivalent of planting 34,295 trees

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$3.1 Million Investment Will Support Indigenous Clean-Tech Company Carbonix

Paul Pede and Darren Harper, two of the co-founders of Carbonix—a Canadian Indigenous technology company—were on hand at The Gathering Space at Gzowski College/Enwayaang at Trent University on Monday (July 15th) for the announcement of an investment of $3.1 million in their company.

MP Maryam Monsef was there to announce the investment for Carbonix’s Indigenous-led clean technology pilot project it’s conducting that aims to use resources more efficiently to reduce pollution and water waste.

Carbonix Co-Founder Darren Harper speaking at announcement (Photo by Neil Morton, PTBOCanada)

HOW CARBONIX TECHNOLOGY WORKS

-> Carbonix will scale-up a project that produces active carbons from sustainably sourced feedstock, like petroleum coke and wood waste, and uses them to capture contaminants from industrial waste streams and mine tailings.

-> This project aims to accelerate the return of water used during extraction processes back to the environment and accelerate land restoration.

Carbonix Co-Founder Paul Pede speaking at announcement (Photo by Neil Morton, PTBOCanada)

“Through projects like this, the Government of Canada is finding solutions that will help reduce pollution, drive clean innovation and create good jobs,” says Monsef.

“Accelerating clean technology development is key to promoting sustainable economic growth as Canada moves toward a clean energy future, helping us meet our domestic and international commitments while helping maintain our natural resource advantage for years to come,” she adds.

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Government of Canada Contributes To Flood Mitigation Projects In Kawartha Lakes

Flooding is Canada’s costliest and most frequent natural disaster. As such, on Wednesday (May 15th), MP Maryam Monsef announced more than $100,150 in federal funding to the Province of Ontario to support work on two projects under the National Disaster Mitigation Program to better plan for and protect against the effects of flooding.

Kawartha Conservation is leading delivery of these two projects that will contribute to updating and establishing floodplain mapping in the Fenelon Falls South and McLaren’s Creek areas. The maps will help protect these communities from flooding events and will guide future land use decisions. As well, the City of Kawartha Lakes has contributed $87,086 for these projects.

photo courtesy Government of Canada

“Canadians are increasingly experiencing the costly effects of climate change through extreme weather events,” says Monsef.

“We need to act purposefully and responsibly to prepare our communities with the supports needed to mitigate this damage. Investing in climate resilience infrastructure is part of our climate plan and part of our plan to grow our economy. Today’s announcement will provide Kawartha Conservation with some of the tools required to protect communities in our region from flooding.”

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Apsley-Based Startup MotherClock Has Launched A Free Paperless Time Tracking Service

On a mission to eliminate wasteful paper-based time tracking processes, Apsley-based MotherClock is offering free paperless time tracking services to any business in Canada.

“You simply mount a tablet to the wall, download our app, and your employees use it to sign in and out of work,” says Co-Founder Jeff Sayers. “It’s a hassle-free way to track employee work time.”

The clever service, which is already being used by early adopter businesses in Apsley, Peterborough, Toronto and Ottawa, can be used as a time clock to live-capture the time as employees start and leave work, or as a time sheet allowing employees to enter their start and end times then submit for manager approval.

“Our software automatically calculates the work hours including holidays and overtime,” adds Sayers. “It’s a real time saver and great alternative to traditional processes.”

According to MotherClock, hundreds of thousands of businesses in Canada still track employee work time using paper-based methods which generates tonnes of paper waste.

MotherClock is seeking to completely displace paper-based time tracking in Canada by the end of 2019.

“It’s an ambitious goal but we’ve modernized a severely outdated and inefficient practice and by offering the service for free I think we’ll have a lot of uptake,” says Sayers.

The MotherClock app is available for download in the Google Play Store. Learn more about it in this video below…

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Watch: PTBOCanada Speaks With Entomo Farms Co-Founder Darren Goldin On How His Norwood Insect Farm Is Becoming Global Brand

On Episode 33 of PTBOCanada, we sit down with Entomo Farms Co-Founder Darren Goldin to talk about how his insect—yes insect—farm in Norwood, Ontario near Peterborough has become a global leader in the cultivation of cricket powder and insect protein, and how it might play a huge part in the future of food consumption and the sustainability of our planet.

Entomo Farms Co-Founder Darren Goldin

Entomo Farms has emerged as one of the largest cricket farms in the world, and produces insect protein as a viable and altruistic response to the global crises (food, water, natural resources) that is imminently upon us.

Watch the interview with Darren below…

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Look At The New Canoe Museum’s Stunning 1.5-Acre Green Roof

The Canadian Canoe Museum has announced that the Dalglish Family Foundation has made a $1.2 million commitment to its capital campaign.

Camilla and Peter Dalglish, directors of the foundation and longtime supporters of the organization (see photo below), were at the museum on Monday (November 13th) for the announcement of the generous gift, which will support capital costs for the new facility to be built along the Peterborough Lift Lock on the Trent-Severn Waterway. The new museum’s 1.5-acre green roof—with its accessible boardwalk, extensive pollinator gardens and exhilarating views of the National Historic Site—will be named in their honour.

The 83,400 square-foot facility has been designed by the award-winning team of Dublin, Ireland-based heneghan peng and Toronto-based Kearns Mancini Architects. The building—purpose-built for the world’s largest collection of canoes, kayaks and paddled watercraft—will blend almost seamlessly into its landscape, emerging from the drumlin and complementing and contouring the waterway.

The roof will welcome visitors of all ages and abilities, and encourage them to explore the spaces along a boardwalk—inspired by the High Line public park in New York City. The roof will feature up to 50 local plant species, including a wildflower meadow. Many of the species are of significance to Indigenous cultures in the area, and have been chosen because they will bloom at various times of the year and thrive in the climate and conditions.

The outdoor spaces at the new museum—including the roof and the waterway—will allow programming to flourish as visitors will have integrated experiences that include its world-class collection. The roof will be among the areas that will allow for ecological exploration and experimentation.

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Fleming College Gives Back To Community, Cleans Up Shoreline At Del Crary Park

Fleming College teamed up with World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF) to host the 2nd Annual Great Canadian Shoreline Clean Up at Del Crary Park on Saturday, October 13th.

Together with more than 50 volunteers including Fleming students, staff and members of the community, the initiative made the following impact…

-> Cleaned up over 108 kg of trash, an increase of 194% from 2017
-> Picked up 3,502 cigarette butts
-> Picked up 376 pieces of small plastic
-> Cleaned up 1.2 km of shoreline

Photo of shorelne cleanup courtesy Fleming College

The Great Canadian Shoreline Clean Up is a national conservation program that provides Canadians the opportunity to take action in their communities wherever water meets land, one bit of trash at a time.

The Shoreline Cleanup is now recognized as one of the largest direct action conservation programs in Canada, and it is great Fleming College is participating in this initiative.

Pollution is a growing concern—especially when it collects in our local parks where it can directly affect wildlife populations. According to WWF, Canada’s Living Planet Report, pollution including plastic waste and micro plastics are one of six leading causes to wildlife decline.

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Electric (Green) City: Peterborough's 7,205 Streetlights Are Going LED

Most of the lights on Brealey have already been converted. Photo: Evan Holt

Work has begun to convert the city’s 7,205 streetlights to Smart technology Light Emitting Diode (LED) streetlight fixtures, which will reduce energy use, electricity costs and maintenance costs.

The impact will be as follows…

• Energy costs reduced by 54%

• Maintenance costs reduced by 80%

• Reduced light pollution (the LED fixtures are “Dark Sky Compliant” as all light is directed downward)

• Better light quality for pedestrians and vehicle traffic

Each light is made up from numerous Light Emitting Diodes. Photo: Evan Holt

It’s estimated that the conversion to Smart technology LED fixtures will reduce annual electricity costs by 54 percent or by $650,000, and reduce maintenance costs by 80 percent or by $187,000.

The City expects to save an estimated 3,618,570 kilowatt-hours of energy per year, a 70 percent reduction compared to the current energy consumption for City streetlights. The reduction is the equivalent of the typical energy use by 375 homes for an entire year. The annual electricity cost is expected to be reduced to $552,800 from the $1.2 million for the existing streetlights, a savings of $650,000.

The new LED lights will last up to four times longer than the previous High Pressure Sodium (HPS) streetlights which will be removed and recycled at qualified environmental disposal centers. Photo: Evan Holt

LEDs will also help the City reduce maintenance costs by a projected 80 percent because LEDs are a solid-state technology (no moving parts) and last up to four times longer than the City’s existing streetlights.

Maintenance costs will be reduced to an estimated $46,700 a year from the current annual cost of approximately $233,700 for the traditional streetlights, a savings of $187,000.

Photo by Evan Holt

The level of lighting provided by the LED lights remains the same as previous lights. The difference is LED streetlights provide a safer light source with better visibility to both pedestrians and motorists. They offer better clarity and improve the ability to identify colours at night.

The LED Streetlight Conversion Project includes a change from a drop glass fixture to a flat glass fixture, which changes how light is distributed on the roadway and associated area. This change helps prevent light from spilling or dispersing onto adjacent spaces where it is not intended to be.

The new LED streetlights will be networked to automatically notify the City when there’s a light that’s out or malfunctioning, allowing the City to immediately schedule the work to fix the streetlight.

Work to convert all the lights is scheduled to be completed by December 31st.

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Fleming College Is Recognized Among The Best In North America For Sustainability Efforts

Fleming College in Peterborough has been recognized as a top performer in the 2018 Sustainable Campus Index, among other North American college institutions in recognition of its sustainable achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

AASHE has recognized Fleming as fourth overall in the college category in its 2018 Sustainable Campus Index. The index highlights top-performing sustainable colleges and universities overall and in 17 sustainability impact areas, as measured by the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS).

“Fleming College’s feature in this report demonstrates our commitment to ensure sustainability is interwoven into every aspect of the College, from operations and community engagement to curriculum delivery,” says Trish O’Connor, Director of Sustainability.

With more than 800 participants in 30 countries, AASHE’s STARS program is the most widely recognized framework in the world for publically reporting comprehensive information related to a college or university’s sustainability performance. Participants report achievements in five overall areas: academics, engagement, operations, planning and administration, and innovation and leadership.

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Here Are Updates On Peterborough Earth Dams

Parks Canada has been rehabilitating the earth dams along the Trent-Severn Waterway in Peterborough. Earth dams are vital for flood mitigation and therefore the safety of visitors, residents and property. These investments will further reduce the risk of flood damage along the canal corridor.

After beginning work in the fall of 2015, it has reached the active heavy construction phase this past spring. Below are updates for specific areas.

Work continues along the Earth Dam south of Parkhilll road in Peterborough

THE EARTH DAM AT THOMPSONS BAY IN NORTH PETERBOROUGH

This was the first to reach the construction phase and is now nearing the final stages of work. At this location, all vegetation has been removed, the dam strengthened, and the new earthen material compacted into place. The water facing side of the dam has also been repaired and armoured with rock. The final stages of work will see additional top soil added to the berm followed by a re-greening of the surface using a specially developed seed mix of tall grasses. The work is slated to completed by mid- to late-September.

THE HURDONS EARTH DAM & CURTIS CREEK EARTH DAMS

At these locations along the western shoreline north of Parkhill Road and the eastern and western shorelines south of Parkhill Road, the contractor continues to remove vegetation—particularly tree roots—which posed a threat to the long term reliability of the earth dams. Work along the dry surfaces will continue late into the fall with the in water work occurring after the close of the Trent-Severn Waterway’s navigation season. 

PETERBOROUGH EARTH DAMS

Large sections of Trent-Severn Waterway shoreline within the City of Peterborough are engineered structures designed to keep water inside the canal and out of adjoining neighbourhoods. In 2015, Parks Canada announced a project to rehabilitate more than 2 km of these earth dams.

The major repairs to the Earth dams throughout Peterborough began in November 2015 and are estimated to continue until Summer 2019. In order to rehabilitate and strengthen these dams, washouts will be repaired, dam height will be increased where necessary and vegetation will be removed. 

HOW THE PUBLIC CAN ENJOY THE EARTH DAMS WHEN COMPLETE

Following the completion of repairs, the dams will be green-scaped with beneficial plants like milkweed, wildflowers and tall grasses. Recognizing the part the earth dams play as public green spaces, Parks Canada will be formalizing the walking trails at these sites at the end of the project so that they can be better enjoyed by members of the community.

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