Health & Wellbeing

Human health is intimately connected to the health of the planet. We need fresh water, clean oceans, and natural spaces that contain a rich array of animals, insects and plants. Promoting education about and recreation in our natural spaces has been a part of the Sierra Club philosophy since it was founded in 1892.

Radioactive Waste: Unacceptable Burdens on Future Generations

Posted on February 12, 2019
In 2015 the Harper Government gave five corporations based in the U.K., U.S. and Canada a 10-year contract to find fast and cheap ways to dispose of the federal government’s own radioactive waste. The corporations are proposing to build a massive above-ground radioactive waste mound at Chalk River, Ontario; and to convert federal nuclear reactors in Rolphton, Ontario and Pinawa, Manitoba into concrete tombs.

Canadian Youth Unite for Lake Erie at AquaHacking Challenge 2017

Yvonne Ho — December 20, 2017

As the African proverb goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together”. This was quoted by one of the judges to conclude the 2017 AquaHacking semi-finals competition. It epitomized a powerful theme for an evening that involved bringing people and organizations together that had been working to develop integrated water governance by promoting technological innovation in this sector. Moreover, to engage future leaders by bringing water problems to the forefront of public and private sector agendas and fostering commitment to solving them. 

"Canada's Oceans: Towards 2020" - Protecting Canada's Oceans through the Power of Science, Art, and Policy

Yvonne Ho — December 18, 2017

"Let's change our national motto - "From sea to sea" forgets that we have three oceans; the Arctic is largest part of our coastline. We're an ocean nation, if our youth grow up knowing that, it will change how we do things... 'From sea to sea to sea'!" - Geoff Green, Executive Director and Founder of Students on Ice

Sierra Club's Urban River Valley and Greenbelt Celebration Goes On at Mississauga's Environmental Appreciation Evening

Yvonne Ho — December 14, 2017

"...The more we all know about and love the ecosystem that embeds and surrounds us, the more we feel that we are a part of it, the more we will see ways to enjoy, protect, and enhance what we have..."

BREAKING NEWS: Government of Ontario looking to expand Greenbelt by one third to protect water resources

Yvonne Ho — December 12, 2017

The official announcement came on December 7th.  The province is proposing to grow the Greenbelt by up to another 345,000 hectares (see Figure 1), adding on to the 810,000 hectares already in permanent existence plus the extra 10,000 hectares of urban river valley lands and wetlands that were announced this spring. This is a truly impressive proposal.

Guest Post: One million cubic meters of Radioactive Waste to be deposited in "Near Surface Disposal Facility" next to Ottawa River

Yvonne Ho — November 20, 2017

"..The consortium proposes a  “Near Surface Disposal Facility” (NSDF), a mound of one million cubic meters of nuclear waste on a hillside draining into the already highly contaminated Perch Creek wetlands, less than 1 km from the Ottawa River.

Sierra Club Celebrates Ontario’s Greenbelt with cake, soup, and a hike in Niagara’s Carolinian old growth forest

Yvonne Ho — November 10, 2017

The Celebration

On the afternoon of October 28th, on St. Catharine’s' Lockhart Drive in a threatened Carolinian Old Growth Forest north of the Niagara Escarpment, the Sierra Club celebrated a major environmental victory. This was the extension of Ontario's Greenbelt to 21 major urban river corridors from Northumberald to Niagara. In Niagara, this involved the protection of Lake Gibson - a reservoir for most of the drinking water for Niagara's residents.

Government of Ontario's "Long-Term Energy Plan" fails to uphold Ontarians' environmental and energy future

Becky Bassick — October 27, 2017

The following article was written by Becky Bassick, Sierra Club Ontario's Green Energy & Great Lakes Campaign Volunteer.


“By wasting billions on nuclear rebuilds rather than investing in far more cost-effective energy efficiency and hydro imports, the government's plan misses out on the best opportunities to lower energy and environmental costs.”


Time to Celebrate: 21 New Rivers Added to Ontario's Greenbelt!

Yvonne Ho — October 5, 2017

PLEASE JOIN US IN CELEBRATING 21 NEW RIVERS ADDED TO ONTARIO'S GREENBELT...

                                                                                                                     THEN                                                                                                                                                       

...HIKE THE ENDANGERED LOCKHART DRIVE OLD GROWTH FOREST WITH US!

Good News!

Sierra Club Ontario joins 47 ENGOs to Comment on Great Lakes Draft Binational Strategy on Persistent Toxins: PCBs and HBDCs

Becky Bassick — September 27, 2017
"The PCB and HBCD drafts suffer from a lack of specifics. There are no definitive goals or timelines in either document. They use generic terms such as “reducing toxins,” but fail to elaborate on how to reduce them."

UPDATE: Sierra Club's Michigan Chapter opposes OPG's Deep Geological Repository proposal in submission to LAMP

Yvonne Ho — September 26, 2017

In April 2017, we provided an update on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency's (CEAA) criticism that OPG's report on its Lake Huron Deep Geological Repository (DGR) project proposal was inadequate and failed to provide information the government had requested, asking it to try again. This resulted in a delay in the Federal Minister's decision on the project until later next year. 

Part II: Let’s Get Motivated for Biodiversity by Protecting Canada’s Lands & Freshwater

Yvonne Ho — July 27, 2017


This article Part II of a 5-part blog series, as part of our Biodiversity Video Campaign.

"When ecosystem services are compromised, economic and health impacts such as lower agricultural productivity and lower quality drinking water can result, raising costs for Canadian, industry and governments."