Life, Money, and Illusion: Lesson from the East Coast Fishery

The City of Hamilton’s planning committee recently heard from Mike Nickerson, the author of Life, Money and Illusion: Living on Earth As If We Want to Stay. Excerpts from his presentation are reproduced below. The full transcription is on the CATCH website.

“…The really fundamental change between human beings and the earth has been well illustrated by the east coast fishery, because when Europeans came to North America you could drop a bucket into the ocean and pull up codfish. They were so dense in the water they couldn’t escape from a basket. And for 400 years, they were the foundation of the maritime economy. Anybody could go fishing and make a living.

“If somebody was ambitious, they fished a little more than they needed to for their immediate needs, they make some extra money and they could invest that in their boat or their net and catch more fish, and make more money. And that more money – more fish – more money – more fish process went on for 4 centuries. It just got better, and better and better and better and then it collapsed. And there’s something about better and better and better that doesn’t naturally need to collapse.

“There is something important going on that wasn’t being paid attention to. And that was the fish stock. And the reason it wasn’t being paid attention to is that for four centuries there was nobody that could even imagine that we would dent this incredible volume of fish let alone bring them to the status of endangered species. But because of the expansion of the number of fish and people fishing and particularly because of the power of the equipment we were using for fishing, you could no longer support yourself fishing cod on the east coast.

“And what we did with the fish we’re doing with the forests. We’re doing it with fossil fuels; we’re doing it in some places with fresh water, with soil fertility; with the ability of the environment to absorb our waste. These are all wake-up calls to the human family. They’re all telling us one thing. They’re saying we’re grown up now. We’re no longer a young offender; we’re fully responsible for the laws of nature, and we will be tried in the court of natural selection.

“There are only two laws in nature that we have to obey. One is the law of the minimum. How much resources do we need compared to what the planet offers – which is what the fish and the fossil fuels is about. And the other is the law of tolerance. How much of our waste can we tolerate - can the environment which supports us tolerate?

Gangzhou, China wins sustainable transport award

Guangzhou, one of China’s fastest growing cities, beat out other cities including Tehran, Iran; Lima, Peru; Leon, Mexico; and Nantes France to take this year’s top honors at the ITDP Sustainable Transport Awards.

The committee recognized Guangzhou for its new world-class BRT system that integrates with bike lanes, bike share and metro stations, raising the bar for all cities. Guangzhou’s new BRT attracts 800,000 passengers a day — more than 90% of the existing metro lines in the world.

The Sustainable Transport Award is given annually to the city that made most progress over the year to increase mobility for all residents while reducing transportation greenhouse and air pollution emissions and improving safety and access for cyclists and pedestrians.

What's Your Big Green Idea?

At the Sustainable Engineers Association Conference on Jan 15th, I challenged students to provide their big green ideas. What can the Provincial government be doing to be greener?Below are the responses. I've since put them on dotmocracy sheets and asked some of my colleagues if they agree. View the results of voting HERE.

• Light rail in the median – should be more widespread (already beingplanned on Hwy 407); we should catch up; in between densely populated urban areas it would be a huge energy saver and also immune to congestion
• Driver education interms of awareness of cyclists and how to treat them on the roads
• Promotion of warm mix asphalt
• Smaller buses onthe road, especially on lesspopulated routes and off-peak hours; smaller buses are more than enough for these applications and are more efficient
• DVP bicycle tram (light rail) with major pick-up points (Salma Saad)
• Major bike arteries, with private and tax deductible funding (Salma Saad)
• Wider bicycle lanes on all major roads, like in Beijing, China
• Single fare system between cities/regions. It is too expensive to commute downtown when you need to buy multiple passes (Radhika Sagar)
• Piezoelectric type panels for electricity generation
• Eliminate HOV lanes; they are not a way of saving the environment and a wasted lane when cars sit and idle
• Increase cost of driving by charging road tolls; Implement a car tax a la Denmark
• Solar cells on top of cars to power them or contribute to some of its power. In parking lots it can be plugged in to a system and the owner can get a cut of the electricity made off the parked car. Rest goes to owner of land. (Armin Hamta)
• Wind generation along sides of busy highways; storing energy (heat) from busy highways that surrounding communities can tap in to.
• 

Sustainable Engineers Association 2011 Conference

On January 29th, 2011 I attended the 1st Annual Sustainable Engineers Association (SEA) Conference.

I was really impressed with this student organization at the University of Toronto, which was only formed last May. Students are driving the change; they are are asking better questions about sustainability, are bridging disciplinary boundaries, and are playing a larger role in creating a world that will subsist for generations to come.

Jean-Francois Bergoum from IBM said that innovation and environment are related: you can’t deal with either without running into the other. IBM has set a priority to use its technology to make the world greener. The more information you have, the better decisions you can make. Many of the world’s problems are information problems. Check out the Smarter Cities Challenge.

Graeme Stewart talked about urban building renewal. Toronto is a city of towers, and the biggest challenge of sustainability in North America is how to make the suburbs work. Sustainability is about how we consume. Eco-refurbishment of the city’s 2000 concrete towers built between 1945-1980 can reduce their collective environmental footprint by 60%. You also have to look at neighbourhoods as a whole. Zoning is a human-made problem. The simplest thing you can do for sustainability and livability in a neighbourhood is to add a fruit stand.

Jane Huang from Zenn motor company gave an overview of the future of electric cars. Electric cars provide high efficiency, no emissions, low operating costs, and low noise pollution -- the future looks bright. Tesla Roadster, 2011 Chevy Volt, 2011 Nissan Leaf, 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV, and BYD e6 are already generating a lot of buzz.

Trish Yee from Steamwhistle Brewery showed that going green makes a great business case. The Good Beer Folks have incredible corporate culture and vision. Their green intiatives include:

• all natural ingredients
• green bottles, green planet: 33% more glass means minimum 45 refills per bottle vs 12-15 refills for industry brown bottle
• painted label eliminates contaminants from paper, dye, glue, saves water and energy
• bio-cups made of corn resin, fully biogradeable and compostable
• 100% on green electricity (Bullfrog power), premium $25,000/year
• cleaner fuel for cleaner air, smart car/minis/hybrids, truck fleet use biofuel made from soya and recycled restaurant oil
• keeping cool: water drawn from below lake to cool plant
• energy efficient equipment
• energy efficient lighting
• waste diversion
• clean air commute

I also had the honour of presenting and talked about how "sustainability superheroes" at the Ministry of Transportation are building momentum for a greener organization. I'll share some of the ideas from the audience in a future posting.

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They don't make 'em like they used to

Great toys are played with for months and even years. They engage the child's mind and imagination. And they get passed down for generations. I find nowadays, many toys are made of cheap plastic, shipped from China, require lots of batteries, and just don't have that sturdy and satisfying feel. They end up in the landfill too soon. My mom kept many of my toys from when I was a child, and my kids are now enjoying them.

Here's a list of some top kids toys

-Audubon birds by Wild Republic are stuffed plush birds that play their actually bird call when squeezed. Really cool.

-Grassroots store has some environmentally friendly toys and games

-wooden blocks

-wooden train set (planes, trains, and cars provide hours of enjoyment for my boys :)

-mini cars (the metal ones)

-books

-sports equipment

-art supplies (kids love playdough.. you can make your own)

-create-a-design with felt

-puppets

-tricycle (Noah loves taking his to the park)

Fisher price music box, c. 1980. Still works great, and no batteries!

The future of transportation in urban life

I recently came across a booklet Our Cities Ourselves. Visionary urbanist Jan Gehl and Walter Hook, Executive Director of the Institute of Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), have together set out ten keys to creating more sustainable cities. It might just be the best sustainable transport report ever!

The Ten Principles of Sustainable Transport

1. Walk the walk: Create great pedestrian environments.
2. Powered by people: Create a great environment for bicycles and other non-motorized vehicles.
3. Get on the bus: Provide great, cost-effective public transport.
4. Cruise control: Provide access for clean passenger vehicles at safe speeds and in significantly reduced numbers.
5. Deliver the goods: Service the city in the cleanest and safest manner.
6. Mix it up: Mix people and activities, buildings and spaces.
7. Fill it in: Build dense, people and transit oriented urban districts that are desirable.
8. Get real: Preserve and enhance the local, natural, cultural, social and historical assets.
9. Connect the blocks: Make walking trips more direct, interesting and productive with small-size, permeable buildings and blocks.
10. Make it last: Build for the long term. Sustainable cities bridge generations. They are memorable, malleable, built from quality materials, and well maintained.

Greening the Ghetto

Majora Carter is the Macarthur-winning founder of Sustainable South Bronx, an organization dedicated to holistic community development, sponsoring projects that create jobs, protect the environment and bring beautiful green space to the inner city. In this charismatic presentation (which received a prolonged standing ovation), she explains her commitment to environmental justice and her vision for a renewed South Bronx. [Recorded February 2006 in Monterey, CA. Duration: 19:14]

She speaks with passion and conviction. Kudos to Sustainable South Bronx for what they've already accomplished. There’s so much destruction going on out there that it can be overwhelming. But truly great accomplishments are never easy. As Sonia Johnson said, “we must remember that one determined person can make a significant difference, and that a small group of determined people can change the course of history."

-S

Wish List for Transforming the Planet (in a good way)

I attended a Going Greener forum last Thursday by the Council of Ontario Universities. It was inspiring to hear from people like Sandra Odendahl, director of corporate sustainability at Royal Bank of Canada. Here are a few points from her wish list.

• Price externalities (using the environment should not be free); still don’t have a real price on polluting, no price on carbon (still), no price on generating tons of packaging; it has a cost on the environment and someone should pay for it.
• Knowledgeable consumers: people have to make the link between stuff and pollution; everything you buy is going to be in a landfill someday; do you really need more stuff?
• Multidisciplinary education: Take your passion and embed it in your field that you work in; we need everybody to have a basic understand of how their lives impact the environment and it doesn’t matter what field you are in.

Minister of Environment John Wilkinson said that biggest thing that we can do as a government is to embed sustainability into the curriculum in all of our schools. It will be the young people who get us out of this mess we've created.

Here I am with my kids on the Oak Ridges Moraine Trail. Being out in nature engages all of our senses.

Redefining Success

A new way of thinking is struggling to be born. It is defined by cities with fantastic public spaces and smaller private living spaces; by walking, cycling, and taking transit more, and driving less; by living sustainably, and not off the backs of future generations; and by your health, relationships, and leaving this place a little better than you found, not how much money you have.

Cycling at the Speed of Life

This morning I participated in a "Ride for Change" bike ride through Vaughan organized by the Deb Schulte Campaign to show support for cycling. Deb has a history in athletics and is very pro-cycling. She would like to build a city that includes everybody, including cyclists - whether they cycle for transportation, or for leisure. Deb is one of 13 municipal candidates in the upcoming Vaughan election who have so far taken the Active Communities Pledge to show their support for making Vaughan a bicycle friendly community.

An article in the National Post on Saturday, July 24, 2010 entitled "Gridlocked in Suburbia" noted a recent MoneySense survey that ranked Vaughan dead last out of 179 Canadian cities in the category of "walk or bike to work", relying on Statistics Canada data that found less than 2% of the population used either method. The City of Vaughan and York Region need to get moving with implementation of their bicycle master plan.

York Region is planning to issue a bike map in 2011. I have taken the liberty of starting my own online cycling map of Maple. The green lines are good cycling routes, yellow take caution, the red need improvement, and I've also added some comments about pedestrian issues at various locations.

Vaughan certainly needs better pedestrian and bike infrastructure: a network of sidewalks, pathways, and bike lanes that take you anywhere you want to go. It's not a war against the car... it's about getting more people on bikes. It is too often treacherous for those who choose to travel in Vaughan by bike or two feet. Pedestrians and bicycles should be considered in all future road planning, and not just leave it up to the developers to decide. The 4-lane McNaughton Rd extension that was built a few years ago, which passes the Maple GO Station, was clearly built with only the car in mind. Also the Teston Road / 400 interchange that I rode through today.

My favourite part of the ride today was seeing Keele Street teeming with bicycles on both sides of the street. Amazing! Perhaps, some time in the future, Vaughan will be like that every day. The culture will have to change, and it starts with our City's leadership. Until then, I cycle on, and I can't help smiling along the way.

Seven Generations

Many of us will have the opportunity to meet our great-grandparents and great-grandchildren, a timespan of seven generations in our lifespan. All of our decisions should be based on the impact of the seventh generation into the future. This is our legacy.

"What about the seventh generation? Where are you taking them? What will they have?"

[photo taken at the Bruce Peninsula National Park Visitor's Centre]

Time for a change in Vaughan

I am dismayed and bewildered at Vaughan Council’s historic decision to approve the urban boundary expansion and remove any timing restrictions for developers. From the polarized views of Council, it is evident that there is a lack of shared vision for the future of our City. The priorities of Mayor Linda Jackson, Regional Councillors Joyce Frustaglio, Gino Rosati, Mario Ferri, and the Chair of the Official Plan Review, Peter Meffe, are out of touch with the needs of our City. It is time to draw the line in the sand when it comes to more unsustainable sprawling development, and rather, focus on intensification. Vaughan is well below Provincial density targets as it is. Imagine our City with dedicated lanes for buses and light rail that come every five minutes, so people would choose not to drive. Imagine a network of bikeways throughout the City that would take you anywhere you want to go, with vibrant public spaces to walk and socialize in the absence of noisy traffic. What a wonderful place it would be. We need decision-makers with guts to champion a transformative and compact City of Vaughan that all of us can be proud of.

Mayor Jackson says “we’ve had planned, controlled growth for 25 years and we are known for that”. Far from it. We’re one of the cities in Canada most frequently criticized. Take a look at a map of Vaughan from 1984 and you’ll see how much has changed. Huge swaths of agricultural land have been converted to low-density housing. Development brings a great deal of money to Vaughan, but at what cost? Cars make low density development possible, and low-density development requires cars. Distances between destinations are too far to walk and public transit systems can't operate efficiently.

The 886 hectare expansion has been cleverly marketed as the smallest urban boundary expansion in the history of Vaughan. Maybe, if you ignore the rules of exponential growth. A 3% expansion now is much bigger than a 3% expansion years ago. It should be looked at in terms of land area. 886 hectares is more than double the size of Maple’s urban area in 1984, and it had taken Maple a century and a half to get there. The entire island of Venice is 517 hectares. But we’re not looking at building another Venice. It’s same old, same old in Vaughan, plus more traffic.

It’s been said that “we will never know the worth of water ‘til the well is dry”. Please vote wisely. Vaughan Council has been plagued with controversy and scandal for the past decade. It's time for a change! The future of our city is at stake.

Chevy Volt Is (Really) A Go!

It's a milestone day. GM's CEO has announced that the Board of Directors has OK'd mass production of the Chevy Volt beginning in late 2010 -- moving that date from a goal to a commitment. That also sets the stage, we hope, for earlier preliminary rollouts of the vehicle in California and other receptive markets, which we think will become more likely as the presidential candidates weigh in with more details of their plans to promote plug-in cars.See http://gm-volt.com/ for coverage and commentary. That website picks up a story from The Auto Channel:http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2008/06/03/088775.html

High Speed Rail from Windsor to Quebec City

"The possibility of introducing high-speed passenger rail service in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor has been investigated extensively on different occasions during the last two decades. However, a number of fundamental conditions have changed since the completion of these studies, including the following:

- Strong economic growth resulting in increased development along the corridor

- Increased congestion on highways and railways and in airports in the vicinity of the Corridor

- Increased implementation, reliability, and service performance of high-speed rail technology

- Increased interest in environmentally sustainable transportation

Consequently, the governments of Canada, Quebec, and Ontario have announced their intention to update several elements of the previous studies that may have changed substantially since 1995..."

The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, P.C., M.P.

ZENN gears up for jump to highway speed cars

Low-speed electric car maker ZENN Motor Co. released its first-quarter results last week and provided an update on plans to introduce a highway-speed vehicle based on EEStor's energy storage system. Here's what the company said: In anticipation of the EEStor technology being successfully commercialized, the Company is readying its plans to incorporate the technology in its ZENN product offerings. In addition, the Company has begun investigation of options for developing its future generation of longer-range, highway-capable vehicles. Two of the more promising opportunities being examined are retrofit kits and a small to mid-size automobile (curb weight less than 1400 Kg/3087 lbs) with highway capable speeds and range.
Newstex Blog, February 19, 2008

http://www.zenncars.com/

Plug-In Hybrids: The Future of Cars

Center for American Progress February 1, 2008. Report and video at: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/02/future_of_cars.html

In the News...

Metrolinx to release Active Transportation Green Paper
A draft version of the Metrolinx (formerly the Greater Toronto Transportation Authority) Green Paper on Active Transportation is up for approval by its board this Friday, January 25th, and will then be released for public comment.
You can read the report by clicking here
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Viva sets wheels in motion for rapid transit on Yonge
The wheels are in motion for officials to move forward with rapid transit on Yonge Street. The question is, will it be bus lanes or subway line? In 2005, Viva launched its 20-year transportation plan. Its second phase is a $1.8 billion project to install bus-only lanes on Yonge Street, between Steeles Avenue and Highway 7, then north to Bernard Street in Richmond Hill.
Thornhill Post, P. 9, January 31, 2008
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StatsCan: Our car addiction is growing
Don't you just love statistics that challenge conventions and puncture presumptions? Until recently, my favourite batch were those suggesting that U.S. states that permit citizens to carry concealed handguns have lower rates of violent crime. Citing those statistics is like sticking a mischievous finger in the eye of anyone who wants to ban handguns in Canada. My latest favourite, though, is a new Statistics Canada report showing that despite all the gum-beating we do about protecting the environment, Canadians are actually more dependent on their cars with each passing year, even in big cities with good public transit.
Hamilton Spectator, P. 19, January 25, 2008
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News Release: Consultation begin for Canada's first motor vehicle fuel consumption regulation
OTTAWA - Transport Canada is reminding Canadians that consultations for the country's first motor vehicle fuel consumption regulations have begun, as announced on January 17, 2008 by the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. The Government of Canada recognizes that the transportation sector is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in Canada and for the first time the government will regulate the fuel consumption of cars and light trucks, beginning with the 2011 model year.
Transport Canada, January 23, 2008

Report recommends new road tolls, gas tax

A study released today suggests you pay even more for your daily commute. Financing Public Transit and Transportation in the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton (GTAH) was commissioned by the Residential and Civil Construction Alliance of Ontario and authored by Trent University economics professor Harry Kitchen. In his report, Mr. Kitchen said the time has come for governments to act boldly to rein in the infrastructure spending deficit as property taxes and user fees just aren't cutting it.
York Region Era Banner, January 21, 2008


Lukewarm response to road tolls; New study proposes tolls for highways, but don't expect to see them anytime soon
Ontario should follow the example set by some European countries and charge drivers road tolls, congestion fees and gas levies to pay for necessary highway upgrades and improved public transit, a study recommended yesterday. Although the province's former finance minister is already putting the brakes on the proposal, the study's author said the extra charges on 400-series highways and major thoroughfares around the Greater Toronto Area would help reduce both greenhouse gas emissions and traffic jams by getting people off the roads.
Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo Record, P.A3, January 22, 2008

Who Killed the Electric Car? - Documentary

It's mind-boggling to know that from 1996 to 2001, GM produced the EV1, an electric car so good that people who had one said they'd never go back to gas. Despite being a waiting list to get an EV1, GM took back all the cars, destroyed them, and claimed there was no demand.

Who killed the electric car:? oil companies, car companies, the US government, California Air Resources Board, and the hydrogen fuel cell.

It's a no brainer. We need electric cars and plug-in hybrids. The technology exists today.
See the documentary, and sign the Canadian National Campaign for Electric Vehicles: http://www.evcanada.org/
And also at Plug-in America http://www.pluginamerica.org/

Clear-cutting our forests

Some of the current forestry practices, even here in Ontario, are very short-sighted. In 2005 I witnessed first-hand the clear-cutting of our Northern Ontario boreal forest while driving on a logging road north of the Agoki River (see photos below).
-S

"A forest is far more than trees. It includes the soil, with all its interdependent bugs, fungi, burrowing mammals, grownd-covers and undergrowth, the trees themselves, the birds and animals living in or moving through it, the natural water systems and the air. A forest is a balanced ecosystem. If you destroy that balance, you are going to be in trouble." -Merv Wilkinson

"By selective logging at or below the growth rate of the trees in a forest, trees can be profitably harvested indefinitely instead of once every hundred years or more. Nor is the diversity that is the key to resilience and regeneration sacrificed when trees are selectively removed." -David Suzuki