Tag: environment

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Heat Pump Chronicles Vol 5

This is the fifth in a series of posts on our journey to navigate government grants and loans available for home energy retrofits and to replace our natural gas furnace with a cold-climate heat pump. Click here to see all articles in the series.

My wife Dayle and I have been living with our Mitsubishi Zuba cold-climate heat pump for over three months now and are still very pleased with its performance. We survived last week, through several of the winter’s coldest days, minus 16 degrees Celsius at night, minus 22 with wind-chill.

Overall our house has been more comfortable, mostly because the air isn’t as dry as was the case with our previous natural gas furnace. Scientifically, I’m not sure why that is the case. We are still heating the air and adding water through the same humidifier. But during last year’s cold snap, our humidity dropped to about 30%, whereas this year it’s been hovering around 50%. That means no static cling and no painful shock as you touch a light switch. The absence of these things is noticeable. It also means that we’ve been able to lower the thermostat temperature by a full degree without loss of comfort.

Not that the entire experience since installation has been perfect. There are a few things about the process that you should be aware of should you decide to embark on a similar project. I want to start with the energy audit process for that is key to accessing government grants and loans.

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2023, Year in Review

BEA Youth Council

Twelve months ago we optimistically embraced 2023 as the post COVID year, the end of mask mandates and the beginning for economic recovery and environmental optimism. In many respects 2023 did not live up to expectations. Although the markets rebounded of late, inflation and housing affordability remain top issues for many Canadians.

Environmentally we degraded into scandal surrounding the Greenbelt, and carbon pricing carve-outs, while the Supreme Court ruled against the Federal Impact Assessment Act and emboldened Provinces to become even more aggressive in their challenge against Canada’s plans for clean fuel standards and an emissions cap on the oil and gas industry. All of this in a year of unprecedented environmental disasters including floods on both coasts and raging forest fires from New Brunswick to B.C. Continuing conflicts in many parts of the world including Ukraine and, most recently, the middle east, have added significantly to our sense of angst.

In that context, your Brampton Environmental Alliance team worked to maintain positive focus on local environmental issues that matter to Brampton residents and to take actions to move Brampton closer to being a sustainable community. The actions of the BEA fall into four categories, Advocacy, Events, Education/Resources and Collaboration/Networking. Looking back on 2023, the BEA has had a successful year in each of these categories. Let’s review a few of the highlights.

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Mobility 2040

Franceschini bridge

The Future of Transportation in the City of Brampton

Sometimes it hard to imagine what is going to happen next week let alone by 2040. But that’s what the City of Brampton Transportation Planning staff are trying to do as they envision how transportation in this City will evolve by the year 2040. They are launching a study to update the current 2015 Brampton Transportation Master Plan into a new Brampton Mobility Plan that will guide the City’s investment in transportation over the next 17 years. They are looking for your input. Join a virtual public meeting on July 18th at 7:00pm. And you can provide comments in a survey and map that is available until the end of July.

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Gentle Stretching in Nature

This past Wednesday Dayle and I participated in the first of two Gentle Stretching in Nature classes hosted by Sierra Club. Earlier predictions were for showers but the morning dawned partly sunny, perfect temperature for a light jacket. We brought along sunscreen and non-DEET, environmentally friendly bug repellant that was appreciated by the participants to keep the mosquitoes at bay.

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It’s April 2023, How Should You Recognize Earth Month, Day, Hour

Ah April! With longer days, the cloak of winter darkness rests lighter on our shoulders. The warmer sun thaws our blood and makes our spirits rise. April is a month of rebirth and awakening; a time to give thanks for the joy of seasons, the laughter of children playing outside, the birds singing and the plants greening, April is also Earth Month, a time to celebrate nature’s bounty and to give thanks for the ecosystem services provided to us by the plants, animals, water and air that surrounds us and supports us. Earth Day on April 22nd, is a time to honour the achievements of the environmental movement and raise awareness of the need to protect the Earth’s natural resources for future generations.

Some would argue the environmental movement merely slows down progress and adds costs to development projects. History shows, however, that unbridled progress often leads to unintended environmental consequences and the potential for human catastrophe. Let me offer a few examples.

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