At Clean Air Partnership we have created a climate lens for use in municipal decision making. The climate lens asks, ‘how will a municipal decision affect climate (through creation of greenhouse gas emissions) and, ‘how could it be affected by climate (ex. extreme weather, flooding risk)?’ In building our understanding of how to respond to… Read More
Green Energy
Fleet electrification – challenges and opportunities
Transportation is a significant source of GHG emissions in most municipalities. Therefore, a transition towards a low carbon fleet is needed. Clean Air Partnership works collectively with fleet managers across more than 30 municipalities in Ontario. Here are some of the challenges and opportunities for fleet electrification. Electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure Significant resources are… Read More
TCAT Releases New Report on Health, Equity and Active Transportation in Markham
Neighbourhoods in Markham with more low-income residents have higher rates of pedestrian and cyclist collisions, finds a new research report by The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) at Clean Air Partnership. While studies across Canada have found similar results, this finding about York Region’s largest municipality is surprising because the research also found that cycling, sidewalk and… Read More
Celebrating Ten Years of Co-Designing Active Cities
In April 2020, the Active Neighbourhoods Canada [ANC] network celebrated ten years of co-designing active communities across Canada. The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) at Clean Air Partnership was a key partner in the network since 2013, and we are proud of all that we have accomplished alongside our partners the Montreal Urban Ecology Centre,… Read More
Why Standards for Green Development Should be a Standard Part of Municipal Climate Action
Housing development in Ontario seems to be proceeding frantically. In Toronto, there are no shortage of towering condo developments appearing as if by magic. Across Southern Ontario, developments of single-family homes have created sprawling communities almost overnight. Population projections for the province show an estimated 193,000 more people per year, and in 2018, more than… Read More
Climate Action in Small Communities
There are 444 municipalities in Ontario. Approximately 90% of these communities are populations of less than 25,000. Tacking climate change poses specific challenges for communities of this size. Smaller municipalities have fewer staff generally, never mind staff dedicated to climate and energy. They have less discretionary funds available due to a smaller residential and commercial… Read More
Needed During Covid: Space & So Much More
“I haven’t been on a bike in years, and this will help so much!” These were the words of Jessica, an addiction services worker, who recently received a refurbished bicycle as part of the Big Bike Giveaway initiative in London, Ontario. This program, which usually provides residents in need with bicycles at a fall event, has switched gears… Read More
Incubating cycling in suburban communities
Cycling offers communities a wide range of potential benefits, including improved health, friendlier streets, reduced traffic congestion, reductions in GHG emissions, and improvements in air quality. However, the nature of suburban communities creates an environment which is not particularly conducive to cycling. These neighbourhoods were often built during the 1950’s post-war housing boom and were… Read More
The Clean Air Council – Canada’s largest municipal climate action network
The Clean Air Council (CAC) is a project of the Clean Air Partnership (CAP). The CAC is a network of 30 municipalities and health units who have been working collaboratively for 20 years on the development and implementation of clean air, climate change, sustainability, and resilience actions. Each year we provide more than 20 in-person… Read More
Energy Reporting: an Enabling Action that Leads to Energy and Greenhouse Gas Reductions
It is frequently said that what gets measured gets managed, but we also often hear the saying that what is truly important cannot be measured. So which is true? Well, both – life is full of contradictions. Deal with it! Many jurisdictions, both nationally and sub-nationally, have been advancing efforts to increase energy reporting requirements.… Read More
Compounding the zero-emission impact
On January 9th, the City of Toronto’s Infrastructure and Environment Committee will decide whether or not to adopt an Electric Vehicle (EV) Strategy. This strategy identifies 10 practical actions to eliminate the 30% of Toronto’s GHG emissions created by personal vehicles, transitioning from internal combustion engines toward zero-emission vehicles. Currently, less than 1% of vehicles… Read More
Why are we not talking about air pollution in Ontario?
When Clean Air Partnership was established 20 years ago, air pollution was a public health crisis that rightly attracted considerable media and political attention. Smog days were the norm, with 53 days recorded in 2005 alone. In 2005, the Ontario Medical Association released ‘The Illness Costs of Air Pollution’ which showed that 5,800 Ontarians suffered… Read More