Tag: Environment

Special Council Meeting on Homelessness

John Draper

At the last Regular Council meeting, a delegation by 7 people, who said they were homeless residents of Cobourg, asked Council to immediately suspend enforcement of by-Laws prohibiting camping and otherwise living in Cobourg’s Parks by people who are otherwise homeless.  Councillors were reluctant to take any action until responsible authorities such as the County, Police, the District Health Unit and By-Law officers were consulted.  The delegation asked that they also be consulted.  The time frame for suspension would be until all the homeless people were provided with homes.  In the end, Staff were asked to provide a comprehensive report in time to be presented at a Council meeting specially called to consider this plus a motion by Councillor Beatty… Read complete articleSpecial Council Meeting on Homelessness

Council Approves New Stormwater Fee

John Draper

Cobourg Staff have recommended that the cost of stormwater management be handled differently.  At the same time, they have been developing an asset management plan that determined how much money will be required in future to provide good stormwater management.   At the CoW meeting on June 20, Council was asked to approve the change.  They were told that significant additional money would be required and that if there were no changes, the average taxpayer would pay $150 per year instead of the $37 currently budgeted (buried in their tax bill).  If the proposed stormwater fee were to be implemented, residential taxpayers would instead pay $75 – no longer in their tax bill but instead in a new bill – similar… Read complete articleCouncil Approves New Stormwater Fee

Proposal for Anti-Idling By-Law

John Draper

In September 2021, Council asked staff to investigate the idea of limiting idling for vehicles in the Town and at the CoW meeting on June 20, staff will present such a draft bylaw for approval.  Staff also suggest an initial education campaign.  The case for an anti-idling by-law is to reduce Green House gasses and improve air quality.  There are many exceptions such as hot or cold weather (details below), Transit, police and more and enforcement would be difficult.  As staff point out, the enforcement officer would have to watch a vehicle and time the duration of idling – although it’s suggested that the maximum idling permitted be only 2 minutes (and not 3 or 5 minutes as in other… Read complete articleProposal for Anti-Idling By-Law

Electric Vehicle Event at the Mall

John Draper

If you were at the Mall today (Saturday, May 28) you might have wondered what was happening in the Parking Lot – it was the “Electric Vehicle and Sustainability Event”.  Many electric vehicles were there ranging from KIAs to Teslas to the new Ford Mustang recently acquired by the Police.  The event was jointly staged by the EV Society (Northumberland Chapter) and Sustainable Cobourg and was opened by Mayor John Henderson.  You could take a test drive of one of four electric vehicles provided by “PlugnDrive” and many owners had their cars open for inspection or you could sit in them.  There was not a big crowd but I spotted several people in earnest conversations with owners – a good… Read complete articleElectric Vehicle Event at the Mall

West Headland Recommendations

John Draper

Since 2017 there have been heated discussions in Cobourg about the West Headland – probably now to be called Waterfront Nature Park. It got mixed up with unpopular plans to expand the Marina into the West Harbour and it’s a natural separation for the natural West Beach. It started with a concern that its official name – Langevin Pier – was no longer acceptable (dare I say not “woke”?).  See the Resources below for more but the short version is that Langevin was an advocate for the residential school system.  But what to name it instead?  Alderville Chief Mowat was not concerned so eventually the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee (PRAC) were asked to decide.  Along the way, there was… Read complete articleWest Headland Recommendations

Cobourg’s Earth Day – 2022

John Draper

Earth Day was April 22 but Cobourg celebrated it at its Ecology Garden on April 23.  A ceremony attended by around 80 people brought together a diverse group of people who felt a spiritual connection to the Earth.  First to make a statement were indigenous people but also represented were Christians, a Jewish representative and an interfaith group covering probably all religions. I did not hear the word “God” mentioned but instead “creator” – no one seemed offended.  Young children (from the S.O.N.G. group) participated with a couple of songs and Council was represented by Mayor John Henderson and Councillor Adam Bureau.  After the initial “song”, the indigenous representative (Susan Siwick) allowed all present to participate in a ritual smudging… Read complete articleCobourg’s Earth Day – 2022

Update on Program to Mitigate Marina Pollution

John Draper

Many of the big news items these days are about the Environment: electric cars, energy issues, unusual weather, climate change and pollution.  Enough people in the Town spoke up about this that the Town declared a Climate Emergency and established an advisory Committee.  Major projects are under way to decide what Cobourg can do on this issue but meanwhile action was taken on an issue mentioned less often: Pollution.  One pollution issue of particular concern is plastic waste in water bodies such as Oceans and Lake Ontario.  In October 2020, in conjunction with “Pollution Probe”, Cobourg installed a Seabin (and some LittaTraps) – see report in Links below.  And it’s still in operation!  At the next CoW meeting on 19… Read complete articleUpdate on Program to Mitigate Marina Pollution

Third 401 Interchange Planned

John Draper

With the development at the north end of Brook road now moving ahead, also moving forward is planning for a third interchange with the 401 at Nagle Road. Currently, Nagle Road has a bridge over the highway but no access to the 401. Starting in 2017, MTO started the process to plan upgrading the 401 to 6 and ultimately 8 lanes from Cobourg to Colborne (more in Resources below). This will involve rehabilitating or more likely replacing seven bridges; the process starts with an Environmental Assessment (EA) which looks at natural, social, economic and cultural issues and includes public consultation. The Nagle Road Interchange is a separate project and is a Town initiative but will also require an EA, so… Read complete articleThird 401 Interchange Planned