Latest Posts

Check out all the latest web content on our site. You'll find links to the most recent blog posts, news releases, commentary and news from around the Club. Maybe you'd be interested in taking a look at our videos or our social media streams to see more of what we've got out on the Web.

The Environment as an Afterthought - A Rant

Posted: 2010-03-15 | Ben Liadsky

I've always found it strange that people can so quickly dismiss environmental concerns. I've been shocked and appalled when the governments we elect choose to do likewise.

I grew up in a city and I still live in a city. In fact, there's a good chance I will always live in a city - more and more of us are living in them after all. Yet, for all my time in a city, I've continually been amazed to find people who know nothing of the city they live in and have no desire to learn or to explore.

As it relates to the environment, people are even less inclined to care. For example, when suddenly the park/ravine/forest they used to play in is turned into a subdivision, they wonder how did this happen. When the beach they used to visit and the water they used to swim in is suddenly contaminated with E.Coli they wonder how did this happen. When people with breathing problems are told to stay in doors because of smog, they wonder...

test 1

Posted: 2010-03-15 | admin

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce semper, sem ut vulputate dapibus, odio est lacinia purus, vitae pellentesque nisi magna eu libero. Nam hendrerit fringilla lorem. Sed varius bibendum dui, nec vehicula mauris facilisis ac. Phasellus erat sem, convallis consequat bibendum vel, sollicitudin nec ipsum. Donec consectetur, velit id semper vehicula, lorem risus viverra risus, et ornare purus purus vulputate justo. Donec quis ligula ante, congue egestas odio. Quisque eget urna commodo ipsum cursus vehicula nec nec urna. Suspendisse orci lacus, eleifend eu interdum sit amet, fermentum non orci. Pellentesque porta elit at risus posuere molestie. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Phasellus velit magna, varius sed ultrices id, porta ut purus.

Terry Fox Road Ecological Disaster

Posted: 2010-03-15 | Ben Liadsky

Courtesy of the blog "Virtual Nonsense" (http://renaud.ca/wordpress/?p=2380):

It took me 2 months to obtain a copy of the environmental report for the Terry Fox Road extension. The report states:

“ the South March Highlands is literally unique within the City of Ottawa. Both upland and wetlands habitat are Provincially Significant, ecologically placing them on a par with landscapes such as Algonquin Provincial Park, Windsor’s Ojibwa Park Prairie and protected areas along the Niagara Escarpment .”

Yet incredibly, the so-called environmental report is devoid of ecological concern and fails to place any priority on ecological issues.

10 Failures In The Report

1. Ms. Wilkinson, the City Councillor for Kanata, will be surprised by the fact that the environmental studies...

"With Great Sadness": Bishop Mills Natural History Centre Letter

Posted: 2010-03-15 | Ben Liadsky

A Letter from the Bishop Mills Natural History Centre

To whom it may concern:

It's with great sadness that I write this letter regarding the population of Blanding's Turtles that lives in the area where the Terry Fox Drive extension (TFDE) is planned.

Twenty years ago, Blanding's Turtles were just “one of those things Fred Schueler worries about,” but now, thanks to the efforts of others who worry about them, including Ron Brooks and the COSEWIC Reptile Subcommittee, they have Species at Risk (SAR) status, and they've become a leading icon of conservation in Ontario. It's heart-breakingly sad that a change in official status should so change the regard with which the welfare of these magnificent Turtles is held, but that's the way it is – this is a society ruled by competition and regulation, rather than by scholarship and compassion.

However, scholarship and compassion having been embodied – by popular demand – in the...

Canada's 1st Bottled Water Free Day

Posted: 2010-03-11 | Celeste Côté

Today marks Canada's first Bottled Water Free Day.

Why would you pay for a plastic bottle of (now contaminated) water, when you can turn on the tap and it's there, for fraction of the price, and is tested more often? AND it's local water, not water trucked in from somewhere else in the country, or, goodness forbid, the globe!

Why is bottled water so bad? Well, Derek sums it up very well in an amusing way, and I totally agree.

Sierra Index: Winter Stats

Posted: 2010-03-11 | Ben Liadsky

This past winter was the warmest and driest on record for Canada. Below are some statistics:

-Number of degrees (in ̊C) warmer that 2009/10 was compared to normal: 4
-Rank of this past winter in terms of warmth since records were first kept in 1948: 1
-Rank of this past winter in terms of lack of precipitation over the 63-year record: 1
-Amount (as a percentage) below normal of precipitation nationally: 22
-Amount (as a percentage) below normal of precipitation in parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan, & Ontario: 60
-Amount (in ̊C) that Canada’s climate has warmed over the last 63 years: 2.5
-Number of winters that rank amongst the 10 warmest winters on record in the last decade: 4
-Number of winters that rank among the 20 warmest winters on record in the last 20 years: 11
-Rank of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in terms of warmth compared to past Winter Olympics: 1

...

Hygiene & Hair washing (and daily water use tally)

Posted: 2010-03-10 | Celeste Côté

Day 10 already!

Just for those who may be curious, I am still maintaining a healthy level of personal hygiene. I'm not covering it up with perfume or anything. haha

I also haven't been running marathons, though. I've thought about jogging since it's getting nice out. I should do that and bathe afterwards and see if the same amount of water still does a good enough job...

[Update: Originally, I had done the math to tally 3 day's worth of water consumption, and when a website glitch lost it all, I...

Interview with Water Canada magazine

Posted: 2010-03-09 | Celeste Côté

Last week I got an email from Kerry Freek, editor of Water Canada magazine. We set up a call, and she asked me a bunch of questions about how things have been going so far.

Check it out here. She also talked to my pal Alina, who is blogging about her progress here, and also here, with Kevin Freedman, creator of this lovely challenge, now in its second year! :)

Do you have any questions for me? What are you doing to reduce your water consumption? I'd love to hear about it. It'd be great if you could show...

Women & Water (in light of International Women's Day)

Posted: 2010-03-09 | Celeste Côté

As many of you are likely aware, March 8th is International Women's Day. (*Apologies for the late post, I'm having some serious internet problems at home!)

How does this relate to water? In a number of ways:

- Women require more water daily than men, and pregnant and nursing women require even more water (according to the World Health Organization)

Pregnant women also require additional fluid replacement to ensure that foetal needs are met,
as well as providing for expanding extra-cellular space and amniotic fluid. The US National
Research Council suggests an allowance of an extra 30ml per day during pregnancy (Food
and Nutrition Board, 1989). Lactating women have additional water requirements, leading to
an additional requirement of 750ml to 1 litre per day for the...

Mopping without water (at all!)

Posted: 2010-03-07 | Celeste Côté

Mopping without water? Easy and effective.

This might sound crazy but it's actually really straightforward, and my kitchen floor is squeaky clean right now.

I use a microfibre mop cloth, which is great for a number of reasons. Mainly, it picks up and stores dirt naturally without spreading it all over your floor. Also, because it's a thin piece of cloth, you're mopping your floor with a damp textured cloth instead of a giant sponge in a bucket of water that will become dirty and potentially make a mess by getting too much water on the floor, you could spill it, etc.

It's too bad the camera doesn't show how much cleaner I squirted on the floor; it was around 4 tablespoons or so. Not that much, really. (This is what I was using, but for those who are sensitive to smells, I'm sure it's possible to make. I'll have to look...

Latest Posts

Sign Up and Get Involved

Connect with Us

Footer Links