Brockville Climate Action Group

Post-Carbon Institute / Richard Heinberg / 28 July 2010

The underlying premise of the book (The Post Carbon Reader) is irrefutable: At some point in time, humanity's ever-increasing resource consumption will meet the very real limits of a planet with finite natural resources.

We believe that time has come.

Recorder & Times / Nick Gardner / 28 July 2010

[...] Leeds-Grenville MP Gord Brown and Brockville Mayor David Henderson provided the toothy grins to celebrate the arrival of 698 energy-efficient lights.

Henderson said the lights are the second batch of a three-phase project expected to be completed next year and designed to save $150,000 annually on electricity costs.

The cost to replace 2,800 street lights over the three phases of the project is about $1.5 million, with $329,130 provided by a federal gas-tax grant received last spring.

Transition Town Cornwall

1.0 Summary

Over the next few years, as the price of oil increases and its availability declines dramatically on a global scale, there will be profound and far-reaching effects across society. This report collates information on what has been termed ‘Peak Oil’ both globally and for rural communities and centres on a discussion of the principal areas that will be affected by escalating oil prices.

Although Cornwall has been taken as the focal point, the recommended responses can, and should, be applied to any rural community. Indeed, many of the recommendations have been influenced by the case of Cuba where the country experienced a Peak Oil situation for political rather than geological reasons. A study of the Cuban example can be found at the end of this report.

This report reveals the far-reaching and dramatic impact of Peak Oil on the life and economies of rural settlements. The government will find it increasingly difficult to alleviate the numerous and worsening stresses within local communities from Whitehall. By necessity local communities will have to take greater responsibility themselves for their own future, designing and implementing solutions fashioned by local conditions. This is the time for us to prepare for a uncertain future.

Once again the Rotary Club of Kingston is sponsoring free Wolfe Island Wind Farm Walking Tours. The student-led tours are operating daily this year, rain or shine, from July 16th until August 29th, 2010.

The Tour Guides depart from the downtown Kingston tourist information centre at 209 Ontario Street at 10 am and 1:30 pm, Monday to Sunday. Guides provide information on the history of Wolfe Island and give a 20 to 30 minute presentation on the turbine project from a viewing area that is approximately 0.5 km walking distance from the ferry. They then escort the participants back to the village to catch the next ferry. Visitors may decide to remain on the island to have lunch or dinner and explore at their leisure. The round trip tour takes approximately 3 to 4 hours. Visitors are asked to wear comfortable shoes, dress for the weather, and pack a lunch and snacks or plan to eat in one of the restaurants on Wolfe Island. Come and spend and enjoyable day with family and friends on the island.

If you have guests visiting over the summer, consider suggesting a tour of the Wolfe Island Wind Farm.

If you have any questions about the tour, please contact Charlene Fawcett, charlene.fawcett@rbc.com, 613-549-6484, for more information.

Mother Earth News / Carol Venolia, Kelly Lerner / Aug/Sept 2007

Space cooling and heating can account for up to 45 percent of your total home energy use every year, but there are numerous strategies you can employ to reduce cooling costs. For instance, a ceiling fan used in conjunction with air conditioning lets you raise the thermostat by as much as 4 degrees while maintaining the same comfort level in a room. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that each degree below 78 degrees on your thermostat will increase your air conditioning bill by 8 percent. You also can use natural ventilation to capture and create breezes, or to help you take advantage of nighttime drops in temperature.

Other money-saving ideas include minimizing heat gain, weather sealing, insulating, window shading and glazing, roof lightening and landscaping (see “Best Bets for Passive Cooling”). Because natural ventilation is one of the most cost-effective ways to cool your home, we’ll examine it here in greater detail.

[ FULL ARTICLE HERE ]

Environmental Defence Canada / Mike Layton / 14 July 2010

In mere days, two big announcements for green manufacturing in Toronto and London. This type of massive shift in Ontario’s economy has been a dream for many environmentalists and workers alike, as Ontario positions itself as a leader in the new green economy.