ECOShift

If you haven't heard about the Home Sweet Home or Ontario Green Home competition in Ontario you need to check it out.  ECOShift made donations to the project and is happy to be a participant in the water conservation solutions incorporated into the Founding Production Home.    As a result of our support this home includes a greywater recycling system which re-uses bath/shower water for flushing toilets, and a rainwater harvesting system for outdoor irrigation.

For more information about the Home Sweet Home competition read the press release below or visit:  http://www.ontariogreenhome.com or http://www.hshcompetition.ca

New Ontario Green Building Awards Presented before Capacity Crowd

For Immediate Release
Thursday, April 8, 2010

Tomorrow (March 27, 2010) is Earth Hour day, a chance for people around the world to make a statement of support regarding the importance of the health of our planet.  Every hour, people all aroudn the world are taking steps to reduce their impact on the environment and our resources. Whether you walk or ride your bike to work, lower the temperature in your house at night,  or hang your laundry out to dry, each little step makes a difference.   Share your story, inspire others and leave a comment about what you're doing to change your impact on our environment.

 [video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FclcMfzjwug]

Below is some more informtion about Earth Hour as provided by the Earth Hour website (http://www.earthhour.org/):

In today's society a lot of items are just to expensive to get fixed, or are just as cheap to buy new so it creates a bit of a tough decision for many people who are faced with considering to repair something or replace it.  I think the area that this is most common is with electronics.  This blog post is a little different from most of my posts but i've been in this situation several times and wanted to share my experience and get your thoughts too. 
Recently our microwave stopped working.  Let me tell you, when your microwave stops working, only then do you realize how often you actually use it.  It certainly is convenient.  So, to replace the microwave with an equivalent unit, or the same unit (which I happen to like) is about $200-$250 plus taxes.  I decided to look at what it would cost to have it repaired instead.   The repair costs for it were $130 including taxes.   This is certainly cheaper than buying a new one but the tough part of the decision is that the thing that was wrong with my microwave was not one of the more common failure points for microwaves according to the people at the electronics repair shop.  If the more common failure occurs in the future it would cost an additional $60-$100 to repair that as well.  So, it's a little bit of a gamble.  The repair place indicated there are no tests that can be done to determine life expectancy of the parts that more commonly fail (i.e. magnatron and invertor) so I would have to take a chance. 
Well, I decided to have the unit fixed since there was no way I would send it off to landfill, and I figured that even though electronics recycling is great, it's still better if you don't have to use energy to recycle something at all.  It cost me $130 (incl. tax) to fix the unit and it's running great. I hope that it will still be running great in 3-5 years from now as well.

I think that the decision would have been very different if the replacement microwave was only $100 or less.  It's hard to justify repair when replacement costs are the same or possibly even less.

I had a similar decision to make a few years ago when my expensive coffee maker ($200) started leaking after 3 years.  The aluminum burner had a small rust spot and was leaking (apparently it is possible for aluminum to rust although not very common).    I employed the help of a local metal worker I had used before to get some fabrication work done and he was able to weld the burner for me and plug the hole for $20.   So far it's been over 2 years since I did that and the coffee maker, although aging in other areas, is still working fine and doesn't leak.  That decision was certainly a good one.

So, the point of my rambling is mearly to generate some discussion from you, our readers.  Leave some comments, let us know about your experiences and tell us what you think.  If this is an interesting topic for people we can start a discussion group in the community for it.

thanks for listening.

A new program just launched this month in Ontario.  Previously when you purchased a new set of tires for your vehicle (on or off road) you had to pay a disposal fee for the old tires you were getting rid of.   However, with the launch of the new Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) Program that is no longer necessary as long as your old tires are dropped off at a registered collector.   Registered collectors can include tire retailers (maybe even the place you get your tires changed), municipalities and other registered drop off points.    Under the new program residents of Ontario can drop off up to 4 used tires per person at no charge to be collected and recycled.  I’m not sure yet if this is an annual limit, once every 2 years, 5 years, or a one time thing but it certainly seems like a good initiative.  It would appear, however, and I don’t mean this in a bad way, that there is a new fee called the Tires Stewardship Fee (TSF), which is to be remitted to the OTS by Brand owners for every tire supplied into the Ontario market.  If this is handled in a similar way to the electronics handling fee under the Waste Electrical & Electronics Equipment recycling program it is very possible that when you purchase a new set of tires, although there may no longer be a disposal fee, there may be a new TSF fee that is passed on to the consumer on the purchase of the new tires which helps fund the program that deals with recycling of old tires.  I don’t know for sure how this will work but I’m making an assumption here that it might work similar to the WEEE program.

Benefits

Currently, of the approximately 11-12 million scrap tires generated in Ontario annually, about 50% are sent to the US to be burned each year.  Yep, burned.  Under the new program this number should be significantly reduced and I would hope completely eliminated.  In addition the program is intended to help eliminate the unauthorized disposal of old tires as people can drop them off free of charge.  I for one would certainly prefer that people drop their tires off than throw them at the side of the road or try to dump them illegally and in an environmentally irresponsible way.  In addition the used tire program is expected to inject about $23 million into the scrap tire recycling industry in the first year and hopefully help create new jobs and economic growth within the province.

What Are The Tires Used For?

Scrap tires can be used for many different things.  Some of the recycled end uses include aggregates instead of stone,  crumb rubber for use in sports fields, hockey rinks, quieter roads, and finished goods like floor mats, soaker hoses, mouse pads, and rubber components for car engines.  You can imagine that this is just a very small list of possible uses of this recycled rubber so it can certainly be put to good use.

For more information about the program please visit the Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) website at: http://www.ontariots.ca/

It's on ...! The Count Me In! Community Challenge, taking place between now and August 14, the anniversary of the North American blackout in 2003, is now underway. The Count Me In! Community Challenge is comprised of two challenges: The highest percentage drop in electricity consumption on August 14, and The highest per capita participation in the Count Me In! pledge drive between now and August 14. Results will be announced at the AMO Annual Conference in Ottawa in August.

The discussion on bottled water certainly generates a lot of different and very strong opinions.  I think the best way to form an opinion is to gather as much information and as many viewpoints as possible.  Only after we have shared our views and listened objectively to the opinions and views of others can we truly work toward a better solution.

 

Let’s talk about it a bit today and get some more input.

Recently, someone I know purchased an LCD TV at a local electronics shop and was charged an Electronic Handling Fee.  I haven't purchased any electronics for a while so I wasn't aware what this was.  So, I decided to look into it a little more and thought that maybe I'm not the only one who wasn't aware of the WEEE program that Ontario launched on April 1, 2009.  Did you know about it?  I have to admit that even reading the local paper almost daily for the past year and being pretty in tune with environmental initiatives, this one somehow escaped me.  So here's a quick overview of what it's all about for anyone else that might not have read, or heard, about it before.

On June 11, 2007, the Minister of the Environment requested the development of an industry funded diversion program for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) under the Waste Diversion Act, 2002. The request required the program to be implemented in 2 phases. Phase 1 includes desktop and portable computers, monitors, printers, computer peripherals and televisions and was approved in July 2008.  The actual phase 1 program itself took effect in Ontario on April 1, 2009.  This might be why I didn't notice it earlier because if you haven't purchased an electronic product recently that falls under the WEE program you wouldn't have noticed the new fee.  The WEEE program is being managed by a not-for-profit organization known as the Ontario Electronic Stewardship (OES).

In the first year of the program, which began April 1, 2009, the target is to divert 17,000 new tonnes (34,000,000 lbs) of computers, monitors, printers, disk drives, keyboards, mice, fax machines and televisions from landfill. At the end of five years, the diversion target is 75,000 tonnes or 60% of available materials.

What Does This All Mean?

Well, it means that Ontario is getting serious about reducing and recycling electronic waste and has developed a program by which fee's are charged to electronics manufacturers (Ontario based) or importers etc. who sell electronics within the province.  The fees collected are to be used to run the WEEE program(s) and provide further awareness and access to recycling options for electronics equipment.  The fees that are charged to the stewards (the manufacturer, importer, brand owner) are often (if not always) passed on directly or indirectly to the consumer as some type of electronic waste handling fee. 

With continued growth and interest in green building technologies, green roofs have been gaining more interest and exposure as a result of the benefits they can provide. A green roof is essentially the roof of a building/structure that has vegetation covering a portion or the entire roof surface. Green roofs can be designed as a part of new buildings or retrofit to existing buildings as well. The vegetation type can vary significantly depending on the design of the green roof, the structural integrity of the existing roof and the varying product options selected. Vegetation may even include some types of edible crops. That's pretty cool.

Types of Green Roofs

There are 2 primary types of green roofs; 1) Extensive and 2) Intensive. An extensive green roof generally has a more shallow growing depth and is therefore suitable for smaller vegetation and/or plants/shrubs. Extensive green roofs, due to their more shallow soil, are lighter than intensive roofs, may require less maintenance and are generally cheaper. Intensive green roofs have more soil depth and therefore can accommodate larger plants, shrubs and even trees. Intensive roofs, due to the deeper soil and larger plant life, require a much higher structural loading capability than an extensive roof does and may require periodic maintenance and trimming. Green roofs offer several benefits ranging from aesthetic, environmental and practical benefits.

Urban Heat Island Effect

One of the benefits of green roofs is in helping to reduce the impacts of something known as Urban Heat Island (UHI) Effect. The UHI effect basically identifies that the temperature in developed urban areas can be warmer than the surround rural areas due to the lack of vegetation, and resulting evapotranspiration, as well as the increased amount of concrete and asphalt that absorb the suns energy and release it as heat. There are many other factors and details associated with Heat Island Effect but I just wanted to touch on the very basics. According to the EPA "the annual mean air temperature of a city with 1 million people or more can be 1.8-5.4°F (1-3°C) warmer than its surroundings. In the evening, the difference can be as high as 22°F (12°C). Heat islands can affect communities by increasing summertime peak energy demand, air conditioning costs, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, heat-related illness and mortality, and water quality."

By installing green roofs on buildings instead of asphalt roofs the heat island effect can be reduced as the vegetation absorbs the suns energy and reduces the heat that would normally be radiated from traditional roof surface. Green roofs also promote evapotranspiration in which plants release moisture into the air which helps to cool the surrounding area.

Outdoor watering restrictions are becoming more and more common place for many regions in Ontario, particularly those dependant (although not exclusively) on ground and surface water. 

 

Watering restrictions have had a significant reduction on water demand during hot summer months over the past years.  Did you know that to put 1" of water on a 10ft x 10ft section of grass you need about 235L of water (assuming 100% efficiency).  For a relatively small 20x30ft yard this would be about 1400L each week, almost 30,000L of water for a typical 20 week summer season.  Imagine this additional demand accross say 50,000 homes in an region; that would be almost 1.5 billion liters (1,410,000,000L) of water demand just for irrigating lawns alone.

I was reading an article, published in many papers over the past week, on the safety of reusable grocery bags.  To sum it up the Canadian Plastics Industry Association hired two independent labs to do testing of reusable grocery bags.  The objective was to evaluate the cleanliness of these types of bags and the appropriateness of these bags for carrying groceries (food).  Apparently, the study found that 64% of the bags tested were contaminated with some level of bacteria and 40% of the tested bags had yeast or mould and some had detectable levels of coliforms. 

 

What is Naturescaping?

Naturescaping (or nature scaping) is a term that refers to a method of landscaping that allows people and nature to coexist. By incorporating certain plants, especially native ones, into ones yard, one can attract beneficial insects, birds, and other creatures, and help keep our rivers and streams healthy. Source - Wikipedia

Xeriscaping and xerogardening refers to landscaping and gardening in ways that reduce or eliminate the need for supplemental irrigation. It is promoted in areas that do not have easily accessible supplies of fresh water, and is gaining acceptance in other areas as climate patterns shift.  Source - Wikipedia

The basic concept of naturescaping, or Xeriscaping, is to incorporate native plant species into your landscape instead of exclusively using species that didn't evolve in the local climate and subsequently require constant irrigation or fertilization to survive.  Naturescaping doesn't mean you can't use non-native plant species.  However, by grouping species together based on their characteristics you can control watering and be more efficient. As a result you won't water the whole yard equally, overwatering some plants and under watering others, because the plant species are grouped to allow you to water appropriately in various areas.

Existing grants are now increased by 25%!

As part of the Government of Canada's Economic Action Plan, the ecoENERGY Retrofit - Homes program grants have been increased by 25% to help an estimated 200,000 more homeowners cover the cost of making energy-efficiency retrofits to their homes. The expanded time-limited program includes a $300-million increase in funding over two years.

With the increased grant levels and the Home Renovation Tax Credit now might be the right time to start looking at that project you put on the back burner, or to look at that new project you've been thinking about.

Hello Everyone,

Today is EarthDay and it's a great opportunity for all of us to stop and think about what we do during the day and whether there are some simple things we can do for the environment.  In many cases, simple changes in what we do not only benefits the environment but can also result in benefits for us as well.  Whether it's saving energy/money/water, recycling, making different choices in our daily plan, or just slowing life down for a few minutes to relax there are many simple things we can do without turning our lives upside down.

Below you will find a list of some simple ideas.  You might already be doing many of these and some might not be possible for you, that's okay.  Take a look at the ideas and maybe one or two will jump out as things you can do, very easily, to help the environment.  If you have additional ideas share them with everyone and add a comment.

Waterloo Region Council is in support of the green bin expansion program.

As is the case in some other regions in Ontario, Waterloo Region is also in support of a full green bin expansion program.  In December of 2008 council approved the roll out of the already successful Green Bin organics program.

Already today 50,000 homes in Waterloo region are a part of the Green bin program.  These homes generate about  6000 tonnes (that's 6,000,000 kg or 13,227,736 lbs) of organics and as much as 40,000 tonnes could be collected each year if the roll out strategy continues as planned until 2013.  Just to give you an idea of how much this weighs an average school bus weighs about 22,000 lbs.  So the organic waste collected each year already today (50,000 homes) is equivelant in weight to 273 school buses.  Just imagine how much organic waste will be able to be redirected toward more enironmentally friendly processing and end uses.

Earth Day 2009 (April 22) is now less  than one month away and approaching fast.

There are so many events all across Canada and Ontario that you and your family can participate in to learn more about the environment and show your support and commitment toward making a change for the better.

What is Earth Day?

Today (March 28, 2009) is Earth Hour day, a chance for people around the world to make a statement of support regarding the importance of the health of our planet.  You can participate and show your support without even leaving your home.  Simply turn out your lights for one hour from 8:30pm - 9:30pm today (local time) and you are making a statement about your support for our planet.

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CRs-7lRlPo 480x295]

 

Did you know that the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) has a standard offer program for renewable energy supply based projects based on Water, Solar, Wind and Biomass power generation?

 The basics of the program are outlined below but for more information and details visit the Ontario Power Authority Website at http://www.powerauthority.on.ca/SOP/ as details and conditions may change in the future.

Basic Program Overview:

The intent of the program is to help Ontario meet its renewable energy supply targets by providing a standard pricing regime and simplified eligibility, contracting and other rules for small renewable energy electricity generating projects.

Eligibility

• Projects must generate electricity from wind, solar photovoltaic (PV), thermal electric solar, renewable biomass, biogas, biofuel, landfill gas or waterpower.
• Projects must be located in Ontario with an installed capacity of not more than 10 megawatts (MW) and connected to an eligible electricity distribution system in Ontario at a voltage of 50 kilovolts (kV) or less.
• To be eligible, projects must have begun operation after the restructuring of Ontario's electricity sector took effect.
• In some areas of the province, the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) may impose limits on eligible projects because of transmission system constraints.
• Applicants must meet certain requirements, including a connection impact assessment, environmental assessment and demonstrated site access, as well as other contractual terms.

The Standard Offer Contract

• Generators must enter into a contract with the OPA for a term of 20 years.
• Initially, all generators except solar PV projects will be paid a base rate of 11.0 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for electricity delivered to the local electricity distribution company. Starting May 1, 2007, 20 percent of the base rate will be indexed annually for inflation.
• Projects that demonstrate that they can operate reliably during peak hours will be paid an additional 3.52 cents per kWh for electricity delivered during peak hours.
• Solar PV generators will be paid a fixed price of 42.0 cents per kWh for the full 20-year term of the contract.
  

With the introduction of the new home renovation tax credit in the recent budget proposal you may be able to qualify for rebates when undertaking green renovation projects.  The HRTC is proposed to be valid on project undertaken after Jan 27, 2009 and before Feb 1, 2010 so there is only one year to take advantage of this credit.  The budget has not yet been fully approved and some details are still pending but based on information currently released the new Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC) can translate to a tax savings of $150 for every $1000 spent on renovations to your home.

According to those we have spoken to in Ottawa the HRTC credit is applied above and beyond any already existing credits available through the ecoENERGY Retrofit Program offered by NRCAN.    

Below is a quick snapshot from the budget website (http://www.budget.gc.ca/) outlining the details of the HRTC.  To keep on top of the HRTC details visit the site often as new information and links will be updated regularly.