[All] Gren News

[Lanteigne]

Hi everybody!
Just few back in from Bali and boy are my arms tired. (Hey, it's an oldie but a goodie.) Never the less, there has been lots of fantastic stuff going on and here's the latest to bring everyone up to speed.
LOCAL NEWS
Waterloo is now home to the first award winning ZERO CARBON BUILDING! Evolv1, a multi-tenant commercial office building under construction in Waterloo, Ont., was awarded Zero Carbon Building – Design certification by the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC). It is the first building to earn this award.The high-performance building envelope incorporates triple glazing, a solar wall for preheated ventilation, a geo-exchange/VRF HVAC system, a three-story green wall, and a combination of photovoltaics. The building is also targeting LEED Platinum certification and will PRODUCE MORE ENERGY THAN IT CONSUMES. https://www.bdcnetwork.com/evolv1-earns-canada%E2%80%99s-first-zero-carbon-building-design-certification


Waterloo Region gets Federal Funds for Energy Saving Waste Water Management
Members of Parliament from Cambridge, Kitchener South—Hespeler, Kitchener Centre, and Waterloo joined Region of Waterloo officials in announcing $5,750,000 in funding from the federal government for new renewable energy technology for local wastewater treatment facilities.
The investment will provide Waterloo Region wastewater treatment facilities in Waterloo, Kitchener, and Cambridge with clean energy technology that utilizes wastewater byproducts as a renewable energy source, decreasing the plant’s consumption of regular hydro power by up to 80%. As wastewater is treated in Waterloo Region facilities, gaseous byproducts will be separated and combusted by green carburetors, generating renewable energy to power the wastewater treatment processes. http://m.cambridgenow.ca/npps/story.cfm?nppage=3608
Waterloo Region Restaurants Ditching Plastic StrawsJody Palubiski of The Charcoal Group said a staff member brought the issue forward, and the company, which includes The Charcoal Steak House, Wildcraft, The Bauer Kitchen and Beertown, took action and stopped using Plastic Straws 2 years ago.  Today lots of other restaurants are opting for biodegradable bio-plastics that break down in as few as 45 days, and there are paper straws too although some straw alternatives can be as much as 35% more expensive.  The need for straws is critical for those who are disabled by mobility or manual dexterity.  For many, including people who have difficulty swallowing for medical reasons, a sturdy straw that is bendable is often the only way they can drink by themselves so it's good to keep that option available for those who need it. For more info visit: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/waterloo-region-eateries-slowly-ditching-plastic-straws-1.4764677


My Beautiful Future is... Annual Report Celebration September 6 with REEP
Reep Green Solutions invites you to celebrate and  take part in envisioning the future of our community. We’ll hear from change-makers who are mobilizing people and cultivating social change right now that affects the future for us all.
Thursday 6 September 2018 7:30 AM – 9:00 AMReep House for Sustainable Living20 Mill StreetKitchener, ON
What to Expect
   
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A healthy, light, local breakfast and networking opportunity

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A brief recap of the achievements of our programs this past year

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My Beautiful Future is… Panel Discussion from local champions on the future of the Waterloo Region


Our community changes from a grassroots level. It’s about more than just the environment, it’s about us coming together to build a beautiful future together. Join us in celebration for the past, present and the future to come!

Hold the Line September 8th. Hold the Line Waterloo Region is an annual cycling and folk music event to celebrate the country side line in Waterloo Region. This year's event is happening September 7 & 8 at Fertile Ground Farm in St. Agatha.  Friday Sept 7th features the evening campfires sessions and Sept. 8th has workshops and activities for folks of all ages. They'll be countryside cycle rides, music, local food and drink and lots of celebration. For the complete info and ticket schedule visit https://www.holdthelinewr.org/
RBJ Schlegel Park state-of-the-art water treatment system in Kitchener When Kitchener was preparing its five-year stormwater master plan, it commissioned a study on local impacts of climate change. The study found that, within 30 years, storms could become 20 per cent more intense.
Kitchener is leading the way a state-of-the-art $3.8 million onsite stormwater management systems in RBJ Schlegel Park in Kitchener featuring rain gardens and bioswales cleaning water while creating habitats. Totally off grid from sewers it can handle 2.5 million litres on site. Liberal MP Marwan Tabbara announced a $750,000 federal grant to help fund the stormwater project.https://www.therecord.com/news-story/8809975-schlegel-park-to-include-cutting-edge-storm-management/


PROVINCIAL NEWS
OPG purchases Hydro Company Eagle Creek Renewable Energy LLCOntario Power Generation announced that it is purchasing Eagle Creek Renewable Energy LLC – which owns 63 small hydroelectric stations in 13 states − for US$298-million, marking the provincially owned utility’s first expansion outside the province.  OPG CEO Jeff Lyash said “This acquisition will be financed without the use of taxpayer funds and will have no impact on Ontario’s electricity customers,” he said. Instead, the provincially owned corporation will finance the deal with debt through its existing credit arrangements."https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/article-ontario-power-generation-makes-first-expansion-into-the-us/ 


Pickering Nuclear Cleared to Operate Until 2014 The 47-year-old Pickering facility is the oldest in the province, first starting commercial operation in the 1970s. OPG said the commission’s decision will keep 7,500 jobs and save customers $600 million and contribute $12.3 billion to Ontario’s GDP. 
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2018/08/08/pickering-nuclear-station-cleared-to-operate-until-2024.html

Lulu note: Knowing that the decision was based strictly on finance it frames the kind of arguments we need to make. Is this actually 7,500 jobs or is this the same pattern as oil companies saying that the same employee working for 3 years in a row = 3 jobs? The need is there to secure a fiscal audit of these numbers. 
Water Getting Too Hot for Nuclear. Lake Ontario water temps might not stay cool enough to cool Nuclear plants. This site gives daily info on Lake Ontario water temperatures.  https://seatemperature.info/toronto-water-temperature.html 
Recently a heatwave forced 3 Nordic reactors to be curbed, 1 to close, more expected, & EDF may shut 4 French reactors. Water is too warm for reactor cooling in the sea off Sweden and Finland, and the River Rhone is too warm in France. They closed the plant in Ringhals, Sweden as well. 
https://jeremyleggett.net/2018/08/01/heatwave-forces-3-nordic-reactors-to-be-curbed-1-to-close-more-expected-and-edf-may-close-4-french-reactors/

Earlier this week water temperatures offshore in California hit 81.3 degrees Fahrenheit according to the National Weather Service. 
CELA uses EBR for Carbon Tax Canadian Environmental Law Association files for an Environmental Bill of Rights review of Premier Doug Ford's cancellation of Ontario's carbon tax due to lack of public consultation. PDF report online here: https://www.cela.ca/ebr-ending-cap-and-trade

All Turtles in Ontario are now officially Endangered Species in OntarioIn April 2018, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) designated the midland painted turtle as Special Concern. This means that all of Ontario’s eight turtle species are now at risk of disappearing from the province. Details here: https://ontarionature.org/news-release/all-ontario-turtles-now-at-risk/

FEDERAL NEWS
Kinder Morgan not a done deal yet...Elizabeth May said on Twitter, the Kinder Morgan sale has not happened yet. Conditions need to be met and closing date is expected to be around September. 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Fracking ruining farmlands in North Dakota due to salt water useBack in ancient history the Romans would throw salt on the fields of their enemies to render the lands barren. Seems the Fracking industry is doing the same thing to US Citizens in the farmlands of North Dakota. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/salting-earth-north-dakota-farmers-struggle-toxic-byproduct-oil-boom-n895771?cid=sm_npd_ms_tw_ma

Dewayne Johnson v. Monsanto in Roundup Pesticide Case Mr. Johnson won $289 Million and proved that Round Up and it's active ingredient glyphosate caused him to develop non-Hodgkin Lymphoma with normal use and that Monsanto acted with Malice towards this man. It is an amazing triumph for a man who suffered so much. This website shows copy of the Verdict posted online. 
https://www.turnto23.com/news/local-news/verdict-reached-in-dewayne-johnson-v-monsanto-case-awarded-over-289-million

Analyst: Renewable energy will be ‘effectively free’ by 2030 
Analysts at Swiss investment bank UBS believe that by 2030, we could all be living without much of a carbon footprint — at least at home. The analysis, published in the Financial Times (Data behind a Paywall but a link is provided to illustrate the issue.)  They explain that solar and wind farms are getting bigger, and that the potential of this sort of cheap, green energy is far-reaching and will only get cheaper. “In 2010, using solar power to boil your kettle would have cost you about £0.03,” the analyst writes in FT. “By 2020, according to estimates by our research team at UBS, the cost will have fallen to half a penny.” And just ten years later, the costs will be so minuscule, it will practically be free. https://thenextweb.com/insider/2018/08/14/analyst-renewable-will-be-effectively-free-by-2030/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=Analyst%253A%2BRenewable%2Benergy%2Bwill%2Bbe%2B%25E2%2580%2598effectively%2Bfree%25E2%2580%2599%2Bby%2B2030



Petitions
Tell Doug Ford to save green jobs in Ontariohttps://actions.sumofus.org/a/tell-doug-ford-to-save-green-jobs-in-ontario?sp_ref=436563510.99.189467.t.0.2&referring_akid=45741.11806931.6BofDx&source=tw
Ask Canada to Improve Toxic Chemical Regulations. https://act.environmentaldefence.ca/page/15837/action/1

Petition to Ban Atrazine https://goo.gl/i5kdBt
Ban Plastic Pollution by 2015 https://act.environmentaldefence.ca/page/23831/action/1

Have a good one everybody!
Lulu :0) 














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