Sustainability : Innovation + Job News

The Toronto Port Authority, long portrayed as an environmental villain by Toronto island residents opposed to its operation of an airport on the Toronto waterfront, has announced an ambitious program of green improvements, part of a $16 million infrastructure spending initiative.

Headlines last week in the daily papers brought news of the TPA's plan to construct a pedestrian tunnel from the Toronto mainland to the airport -- contentious because of previous, thwarted plans to build a bridge. But buried in the news cycle was the announcement that all of the TPA's operations will be powered by renewable energy bought through a partnership with Bullfrog Power.

On the enviro front, the federal government agency responsible for Toronto's port further plans to invest $1 million in creating fish habitat, making a change to green lubricants for servicing all its machinery and vigilantly enforcing anti-idling laws. It's a small part of $16 million in capital expenditures in this year's TPA budget that includes resurfacing runways, constructing a sound barrier and upgrading equipment. The changes anticipate a growth in air traffic at the airport of over 35 per cent.

Community AIR, an activist group who have long opposed the TPA and the island airport, maintains the position that "a large, polluting airport within two kilometres of the city downtown will ruin the quality of life of all Torontonians."�

By now, any boozehound who bellies up to the bar can choose from dozens, if not hundreds, of beers brewed locally in small batches. The microbrewery trend caught on in the GTA in the 1990s and -- despite such industry innovators such as Sleeman's and Upper Canada being swallowed by big corporations -- the small-is-beautiful ethos has solidified among discerning beer drinkers.

But until now, Ontario has not had a micro-distiller making spirits in small batches. Still Waters, based in Vaughan, changed that late last year when it launched a single-malt vodka at the LCBO, the company's (and the province's) first micro-distilled product to reach the market.

According to Barry Bernstein, Still Waters' co-founder and one of its two employees, the vodka, which retails for $36.95, is selling well. Still Waters was founded in 2005 as an importer, bottler and distributor of single-malt scotches. But last year the company was reborn with the purchase of a custom-made (and beautiful) pot still from Germany.

The vodka is made by hand in small batches ("600 litres, rather than 6,000 or 20,000 litres" as big distillers do, says Bernstein), and every bottle is packed by hand by the company's creators.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Barry Bernstein, Founder, Still Waters

Ever since the 2007 publication of The 100-mile Diet by Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon, locavorism has become an ever-growing trend across North America. You can't read a Queen Street West restaurant menu these days without learning which farm your cow grew up on, and you can hardly navigate a city park amid the bugaboo strollers and bulging reusable designer bags crowded around the Farmers' Markets and the plots of community gardens.

While the conscious eating trend is more than local, much of the groundwork for the city's network of conscious food infrastructure was laid with the adoption of the Toronto Food Charter (pdf) in 2001.

And now, in a part of the 905 where farming is actually still a thriving industry, sustainable eating is taking on a similar practical force: the non-profit Community Development Council of Durham has secured $35,000 in funding to turn the principles of the Durham Region Food Charter into real action. The Charter has been in development for over three years. It lays out principles for healthy eating, environmental sustainabiltiy and support for local agriculture.

The CDCD initiative, funded by Friends of the Greenbelt, will set up an action plan and working group. According to Friends, 25% of farms in Ontario's greenbelt are located in Durham region.

The charter's goals also received a boost recently with the formation of The Durham Culinary Association, a Pickering-based social networking group of chefs devoted to local eating established by chef Philippe Trepanier and teacher James Blair.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Sources: Friends of the Greenbelt, Community Development Council of Durham, newsdurhamregion.com.

Late last September, Toronto City Council approved a pilot program to allow car-sharing services to use on-street parking spaces and Toronto-based service AutoShare announced almost immediately that it would be putting cars in various locations downtown and in North York.

But last week, Toronto's other big car-sharing service, the Massachusetts-based Zipcar, announced that it was first in getting with the program. The first-ever space on-street, the company says, will be a Zipcar at the intersection of Harrison Garden Blvd. and Humberstone drive. The company expects to add 10 more spaces at other locations in the coming months.

While cycling and transit often dominate sustainable transportation discussions, car-sharing is proven by long-term studies to reduce reliance on vehicles among members and to increase demand for public transit. The City of Toronto, with a growing and competitive market, has been quietly encouraging the growth of car sharing services by, for instance, reducing parking requirements on condominiums with car-sharing services on-site.

In a release announcing Zipcar's new spot, City Councillor John Fillion said, "I'm pleased to have the first car in this program located in my Ward so our residents not only can save money, but also enjoy less traffic and less pollution."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Zipcar, City of Toronto, Autoshare

When it passed the Ontario Green Energy Act, the provincial government not only made a bold, perhaps world-leading commitment to sustainable energy, it also created huge opportunities to make money. By guaranteeing to buy electricity for above-market prices from those who create green sources of energy (solar, wind, etc.), the government essentially created a subsidized, guaranteed profit stream for anyone with the ingenuity and finances to get in the game.

At the time of the announcement, Premier McGuinty's team estimated the act would create 50,000+ "green collar jobs." And just last week, in a move decried by some right-wingers and some left-wingers, Korean company Samsung led the way with a $10 billion project that is expected to create 16,000 new jobs and to become the largest wind-and-solar power-generating cluster in the world.

So: how does an entrepreneur get in on this? MaRS is hosting a forum on Jan. 29 for the finance sector on investment opportunities presented by the Green Energy Act. The price tag for the event is $200, and the forum is intended primarily for financial institutions who will be putting cash into projects under the act and the "sector players who will require that finance."

More information and registration at MaRS. Homeowners of more modest means may still want to look into how they can (more modestly) invest, such as local solar panel buying groups.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Sources: MaRS, greenenergyact.ca, Financial Post, Canada Newswire, Northumberland Today

The internet, it's been widely remarked, turns the world into a giant town hall. Activist messages can spread via social networks to the corners of the globe in minutes. Meetings can take place across continents. Reams of data can be analyzed, mailed and archived without ever using up a single sheet of paper.

But all that transformational power eats up a lot of energy, most of it fossil-fuel devouring electricity. Three entrepreneurs in Toronto realized the toll the internet was taking on the earth early last year, and decided to do something about it.

In July 2009, healthcare technology entrepreneur Nikolai Bratovski, tech developer Sasha Baksht and journalist John Carson founded Greenscroll. The non-profit company takes donations from websites wanting to negate their environmental footprint and invests the money in renewable energy projects. Companies who participate receive a certification button to place on their website.

"We love the net, it's a subject close to our hearts," co-founder and "Communications Scroller" Carson says, noting that all three of the founders earn most of their living through technology. "But we looked at what we were doing and decided it was time to give back. We're trying to create a sustainable internet."

Six months after they launched, the group has signed up 15 partner companies and claims to have "greened 65,000 pageviews," bringing 12 megawatt hours of renewable energy to the internet. This milestone was reached on January 10, when the company received its first renewable energy certificate. "It's early going and these are small steps," Carson says, "right now we're focused on getting the word out."

As of today, the entire enterprise is staffed by volunteer labour, but the workforce has doubled since the company's launch -- the founders have been joined by three other "full-time" volunteers, Carson says. He points out that the non-profit, volunteer structure is exactly what the founders want: "We're trying to fight climate change, not profit from it."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: John Carson, Co-Founder and Communications Scroller, Greenscroll

Even with the unusually warm, dry weather we've been experiencing this winter -- and in fact, even in the warmer months -- cycling is not always easy. Pedal-powered transportation faces roads built with cars in mind, and most offices and businesses are set up to accommodate those arriving by car or transit (lacking bike racks, never mind showers and changerooms).

Even still, a survey announced January 18 by the City of Toronto showed cycling growing in Toronto, with 54 per cent of residents older than age 15 riding bikes, and 16 per cent saying they use their bikes to commute to work or school.

As the population grows, businesses adapt, and the Bicycle Friendly Business Awards aim to recognize companies that come up with innovative ways to make two-wheeled travel more attractive.

At the awards ceremony held January 19 at the Gladstone Hotel, the big winner was Bike Train, an initiative that won both Best Overall and Best Small Business. The company, founded by Toronto resident Justin Lafontaine and launched initially in 2007, puts bike racks on passenger rail trains to allow for easier bicycle tourism.

The full list of winners announced at the ceremony:

Best Bike Parking Award: Mountain Equipment Co-op
Bicycle-Friendliest Suburban Business Award: Smart Commute North Toronto Vaughan
Bicycle Commute Award: Ontario College of Art & Design
Best Small Business Award: Bike Train Initiative
Best Large Business Award: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center
Best Skills Development Award: Charlie's FreeWheels
Best Overall Award: Bike Train Initiative

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Steve Johnston, Sr. Communications Coordinator, City of Toronto

For ecobee opportunity runs both hot and cold. The young, Toronto-based startup established itself as a company that delivers intelligent energy conservation solutions for real people and its green-minded approach is proving to be a winner with customers Stateside.

"We help consumers save money, conserve energy and reduce their environmental footprint; we build technologies to help consumers do that," explains Stuart Lombard, president and CEO of ecobee. "Our first product build is a more intelligent, programmable thermostat. Fifty to seventy per cent of your home energy use is due to heating and cooling."

Established in July 2007, ecobee's product platform is built around the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating system, an internationally recognized set of standards for environmentally sustainable construction. Fast-forward to February 2009, Lombard and his staff of 25 are selling the ecobee Smart Thermostat at a healthy clip south of the 49th parallel.

"We've been selling products since February 2009 with 95 per cent of our sales taking place in the U.S.," he said. "We sell in every single state and we have over 350 installation partners that install and service our product."

ecobee also works closely with about 20 electrical utilities across North America including Toronto Hydro via its Peak Saver Program. "We work with utilities on those types of applications and our product ties into the smart meters that are rolling out across the continent. Our product allows you to see your real-time electricity use."

Headquartered at 333 Adelaide Street West, the company is enjoying another growth spurt. Though energy conservation solutions like the Smart Thermostat appeal to green-minded homeowners in general, the average consumer's increasing appreciation for reducing his/her own carbon footprint combined with the Smart Thermostat's use of the Web is proving to be a resounding success.

"We're expecting 300 to 400 per cent growth year-over-year and we're growing on that trajectory right now," he added. "In the future, as we move toward new technologies, there will be a platform to manage the consumption and generation of electricity in your home and we'd like to tie into all of those things."

Writer: Liam Lahey

Standing taller than just another product or technology, EnviroTower provides a means for companies to switch to a clean cooling tower water treatment system versus going "bareback" and dumping chemically-treated water back into the municipal wastewater system. That's so 1980s. And yet, each year, tens of thousands of litres of chemically-treated water enters wastewater systems after being used to keep most large buildings and factories cool. What better way for any earth-respecting corporate citizen to walk the green talk than to invest in this firm's solution?

In a nutshell, EnviroTower's innovative system cuts both the amount of chemicals used as well as water and energy requirements during treatment, while ensuring that scale and corrosion in a water tower is kept to a minimum via an intricate monitoring system.

Founded in 2004 and calling its 380 Adelaide Street West digs in Toronto home, the comprehensive and financially rewarding EnviroTower solution includes the patented water treatment system and web-based remote system monitoring capabilities, all supported by a customer service program designed to ensure its' large enterprise clientele receive the maximum return on their clean cooling tower water treatment system investments.

Led by CEO Paul Wickberg, the company has gained the endorsement of some of North America's largest and most demanding commercial real estate organizations. EnviroTower officials credit its continued growth on the ability to deliver consistent, reliable results. EnviroTower's customers include the likes of IBM, Hilton Hotels, Marriott Hotels, and Wal-Mart; each reportedly realizing an average savings of 15 per cent on their cooling system's energy draw and 20 per cent on water consumption annually.

EnviroTower's North American service is provided by its own service representatives, supported by in-house leading water industry engineers who perform on-site system analysis, design, training, testing, reporting, performance validation and ongoing consultation and support.

Writer: Liam Lahey