Think Conservation
The Region of Peel actively promotes conservation and sustainability and has a wealth of available information. Conservation Peel provides easy access to information on conservation programs in the Region.
Watersmartpeel.ca is an excellent source for information on improving water efficiency inside and outside your home.
Corporate Energy Management has information available for reducing the amount of energy you consume at home.
Public Works purchased hybrid vehicles which are more fuel efficient and emit fewer harmful emissions. Have you ever thought of owning one?
Clean Air Peel contains information on daily air quality and smog. It also identifies actions you can take to improve our air quality.
Planning managest growth to create a more “liveable region” through many initiatives including developing a Climate Change Strategy and research on important environmental, economic, social, demographic and transportation trends.
We encourage you to make small, positive changes to the way you live to reduce your impact on the environment. Not only will you benefit but your community will too.
Food Tip
Visiting your local farmers’ market reduces your carbon footprint.
Carbon dioxide can be emitted when food is produced, transported, or processed. Purchasing locally grown food is the most significant way to reduce your food footprint. Large food footprints are driven by meat consumption (raising livestock requires more land and resources than growing crops), eating packaged foods and consuming imported food from distant markets.
Often, we don’t realize the importance of Ontario’s farm economy to the environment; however, it does provide us with a great amount of fresh produce that we can purchase locally. In 2006, about 33 per cent of Peel Region was farmland that included 483 farms. You can buy fresh locally grown food from these farms at farmers market and directly from farms located throughout the Region.
Supporting the local farmers in your community is an opportunity to support local businesses and a diverse sustainable economy while at the same time reducing our demands on the environment. We encourage you to practice the art of preserving seasonal foods for consumption later in the year. Making jam and freezing fruits and vegetables are easy ways to get started.
Transportation Tip
An average commute to work in Peel over the period of one year will require 0.83 hectares of forest to remove carbon dioxide through photosynthesis and storing it in the tree and soil as carbon. This would be over 271,000 hectares of forest for Peel Region cars commuters. This is two times the area of Peel Region.
The average daily commute to work in Peel Region is 15 kilometres each way (total 30 kilometres). If we consider the average fuel efficiency of North American cars, each kilometre driven burns about 0.09 litres of gasoline and produces 0.22 kilograms of carbon dioxide. In a typical year, if you work 230 days and commute to work each day, the total carbon dioxide emitted into the air would add up to a hefty 1,741 kilograms (3,838 pounds).
Typical temperate forests can remove (photosynthesize) approximately 2,100 kilograms (4,630 pounds) of carbon dioxide per hectare per year (about 2 acres of forest). Trees also have the added benefits of removing pollutants and providing the oxygen we need to breathe.
Therefore, an average commute to work in Peel over the period of one year will require 0.83 hectares (2 acres) of forest to clean the air – which is just over one and a half soccer fields of trees.
We encourage you to reduce your carbon footprint by carpooling, taking transit, walking or biking to work and to limit travel during your daily routine. If you decide to carpool and eliminate a daily commuting trip, you can help improve the environment as fewer vehicles on the road results in less greenhouse gases being emitted. The cumulative improvements to air quality from numerous commuters carpooling will be significant.
Housing Tip
The average Ontarian spends about $2,000 on their home energy consumption.
In any given household, a savings upwards of 30 per cent on your energy bill can be realized with very little effort. Simple choices can make a big difference. The average home energy bill is $2,000 in Ontario, most of which is used to heat rooms (1,140 to 1,249 - 57 to 62 per cent) and water ($400 to $420 - 20 to 21 per cent). The balance is spent on energy for appliances ($240 to $260 - 12 to 13 per cent), lighting ($80 to $100 – 4 to 5 per cent) and air conditioning (0 to $200 – 0 to 7 per cent).
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment has published a Home Heating and Cooling Conservation Guide to help you conserve energy and save money. This guide provides information about home heating and distribution, heat loss, green energy options, air conditioning tips, tips on hot water heating and energy efficient appliances.
Revised:
Monday July 19 2010
www.peelregion.ca
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