Scraping off the topsoil
I happen to live a few kilometres north of Toronto in a town that has grown from 12,000 to 160,000 people since I moved here in 1972. It is astounding to think how much we have been able to alter the...
View ArticleA Reaction to Ontario’s Places to Grow Plan
If you think about it, information technology — particularly word processing and PowerPoint — has had a tremendous effect on the way governments communicate with their citizens. Yesterday we saw a...
View ArticleLife in the fast bike lane
A week ago or so I was bemoaning the loss of a bike lane – an 18-inch strip of pavement that made commuting by bike feel a little safer. Well, it seems I’ve been asleep at the switch. In truth, I’m not...
View ArticleIn a Green Canada, every month is May
Yesterday the Green Party of Canada elected Elizabeth May as their new party leader. Given the fatigue that many Canadians feel for the old left-right, liberal-conservative binaries, let’s hope that...
View ArticleStormwater Retention Pond Blues
If you happen to live in an urban area, you probably walk, cycle or drive by a stormwater retention pond almost every day. If you are not sure, just look for a medium-sized, murky body of water...
View ArticleT.O. in 2050
The Toronto Star’s Catherine Porter has written a lovely catalogue of the global warming horrors that await Toronto and the GTA in the coming decades: drought, flash floods, algal blooms, power...
View ArticleInnisfil residents to become next victims of “Places to Grow” act
The McGuinty legacy of “managing” growth, by foisting it on unsuspecting towns and residents across southern Ontario continues. On Monday, January 10th, Innisfil residents are invited to a public open...
View ArticleYork Region Debt Part Deux
Due to York Region’s confusing governing structure, many people I talk to are only vaguely aware of York’s Regional Council — an overarching body that actually collects and spends the majority of all...
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