Transition Brockville

Critics weigh in on federal budget cash for home retrofits

National Observer / Natasha Bulowski / 21 April 2021

The federal budget’s plan to retrofit residential buildings falls short of what is needed to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and create well-paying jobs, experts say.

The budget, announced Monday, includes a $4.4-billion investment over five years to improve energy efficiency in residential buildings with projects like replacing oil furnaces or low-efficiency systems, fixing drafty windows and doors, installing solar panels or upgrading wall insulation. But experts estimate the actual cost of retrofitting Canada’s residential buildings is more than 14 times that amount.

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‘Relentless’ climate crisis intensified in 2020, says UN report

The Guardian / Damian Carrington / 19 April 2021

There was a “relentless” intensification of the climate crisis in 2020, according to the UN’s World Meteorological Organization.

The coronavirus pandemic made the accelerating impacts of global heating even worse for millions of people. But the temporary dip in carbon emissions due to lockdowns had no discernible impact on atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, the WMO report said.

Last year was ranked as the hottest on record, in a tie with 2016 and 2019, despite the cooling effect of the cyclical natural climate phenomenon, La Niña. Without this, 2020 would most likely have been the hottest year yet. The decade 2011-20 was the hottest on record.

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Sustainable North Grenville: Where We Started

North Grenville Times / 14 April 2021

In honour of Earth Day, and in lieu of the cancelled Sustainability Fair (we miss it too!), Sustainable North Grenville is releasing a series of articles, beginning today with ‘Where We Started’, a pocket history introduction. Next week look for ‘Where We Are Now?’, complete with our ‘State of NG’ community report card. The following week we finish with ‘Where to Next?’, mapping next steps to ensure a more sustainable future for North Grenville.

Sustainable North Grenville (or ‘SNG’) is your local citizen action group whose goals are to promote all things ‘Sustainable’ in the context of three values:

Our Community: To strengthen the resilience of our community at large – culturally and socially – by a number of measures, including better communication (‘knowing our neighbours’) and, of course, by having fun together!

The Environment: To raise awareness of environmental issues in our community with a mix of education and action.

Local Economy: To support and promote the principles of sustainable community economic development – living and breathing the ‘buy local’ philosophy.

[ FULL ARTICLE ]

Exploring timelapse in Google Earth

Google / 15 April 2021

See humanity’s impact on the Earth through a global time-lapse video of the planet since 1984.

Local Food Access Network proposing food forest for Gananoque

The Kingston Whig / Lorraine Payette / 12 April 2021

“There are so many positive spin‐offs from a project like this when it comes to community development. It has the potential to attract community members to get involved with groups like Trees and Trails and the Horticultural Society who I understand would be delighted to have some younger members with a little extra strength and energy to offer. It would also offer great volunteer opportunities to students, seniors and families. It would be a fabulous educational resource and a beautiful location for community events. More importantly though, it would be a guaranteed affordable access point for safe and nutritious food. There has never been a time when our community needs it more. In short, the project would help fulfill our town’s Environment and Infrastructure Initiative while at the same time would help to fulfill the vision of our network.”

[ FULL ARTICLE ]

Benefits of ‘drastic’ climate action outweigh costs: economists

CTV News / Patrick Galey / 30 March 2021

The cost of global warming will far outweigh the cost of rapidly cutting greenhouse gas emissions, more than 700 economists from around the world said Tuesday in an unprecedented call to climate action.

A major international survey found that nearly three-quarters of the economists responding believed that “immediate and drastic” action was needed to limit the fallout of climate change, warning that the costs of failing to slash carbon pollution would rapidly balloon to reach trillions of dollars every year.

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