Peterborough Blogs
Trent sent 30 tonnes less to landfills just last year, helped by the implementation of a $7 membership to use eco-trays, a reusable container at food vendors on campus, plus a $1 charge on single-use meal containers.
Fleming College Teams Up With Trent University To Cleanup Shoreline At Del Crary Park
/Fleming College teamed up with Trent University and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada’s Living Planet @ Campus to host the 3rd Annual Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup at Del Crary Park on Saturday, November 2nd.
Together, with 61 volunteers including Fleming students, staff and members of the community, the initiative made the following impact:
Cleaned up over 161.5 lbs. of trash
Picked up 2,960 cigarette butts
Picked up 278 pieces of plastic
Picked up 249 food wrappers
Picked up 187 pieces of paper
Photo courtesy Fleming College
“Pollution is a growing concern, and when it collects in our local parks and directly affects our wildlife populations, we all have an obligation to make a difference,” says Fleming College President Maureen Adamson. “We are very proud of this initiative, and of our staff and students, and all who participated and made their contribution to our community.”
The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup is an initiative that encourages the community to take action towards keeping shorelines clean, increasing awareness around proper waste diversion and the ways it affects water and aquatic habitats.
To learn more about Fleming’s sustainability initiatives, click here.
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Otonabee Conservation Planted 43,494 Trees & Shrubs Throughout Otonabee Region Watershed In 2019
/Otonabee Conservation wrapped up the fall tree planting season on November 5th by planting a Sugar Maple at Memorial Park in partnership with City of Kawartha Lakes.
In 2019, Otonabee Conservation conducted plantings on 24 sites throughout the watershed, putting 43,494 native trees and shrubs in the ground. Their plantings engaged over 450 students and volunteers from across the region.
Photo courtesy Otonabee Conservation
“Planting trees is as an effective way to mitigate climate change by removing atmospheric CO2 from the air,” say Dan Marinigh, CAO of Otonabee Conservation. “Working with landowners and partners to plant trees is a great way for us to work together to build natural resilience in our watershed.”
When trees are first planted, a large proportion of the annual exchange of CO2 goes into growing the tree’s woody biomass. As a tree grows, it continues to sequester carbon through its annual growth rings, along with a proportion that is drawn from leaf litter, which becomes incorporated into the soil below the tree each fall. Trees are beneficial for many reasons: They clean the air, help us to stabilize soils, increase the value of property, create habitat, and improve our health.
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Otonabee Conservation Celebrates 60th Anniversary With Tree Plantings During National Forest Week
/This Fall, Otonabee Conservation is celebrating National Forest Week and their 60th Anniversary with tree plantings throughout their watershed.
Members of Council in each of the Otonabee Region Watershed Municipalities will join with Otonabee Conservation staff to plant a native species in commemoration of the long-standing relationship with the Conservation Authority and to celebrate National Forest Week.
Otonabee Conservation Board of Directors Chair, Andy Mitchell (left) shovels soil around a Northwood Red Maple tree, along with (left to right) Councillor Paula Warr, Deputy Mayor Lori Burtt, Mayor Roger Bonneau, and Councillor Barry Walsh, from Township of Asphodel-Norwood in Asphodel-Norwood. (photo courtesy otonabee conservation)
“Planting a tree is one single action that helps support a number of environmental outcomes,” says Dan Marinigh, Chief Administrative Officer at Otonabee Conservation, “Planting trees with our municipal partners is a way for us to leave a natural legacy for years to come, while highlighting the necessary work we do together to protect our watershed.”
Planting trees helps regulate temperatures and provides shelter to wildlife. Trees also filter the air we breathe, capture carbon dioxide mitigating climate change, and stabilize the ground preventing erosion and reducing stormwater runoff and flooding.
Asphodel-Norwood photo courtesy ontario conservation
Plantings will take place in each of the Municipalities, as follows…
-> September 24th, 1 p.m., Asphodel-Norwood | Norwood Millpond
-> September 24th, 5 p.m., Selwyn | Township Office
-> September 25th, 2 p.m., City Of Peterborough | Rogers Cove
-> September 26th, 10 a.m., Trent Hills | Hastings Marina
-> October 15th, 4 p.m., Douro-Dummer | Municipal Office
-> October 21st, 5:15 p.m., Otonabee-South Monaghan | Municipal Office
-> Date TBD, time Cavan Monaghan | Location
-> Date TBD, time City of Kawartha Lakes | Location
Visit otonabeeconservation.com for updates to dates, times and locations that are yet to be determined.
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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…
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
