1. The Living City

2. The Living City…  About 80% of Canadians live in cities (50% of the world’s population).  Our expansion into the countryside causes pollution (air, water, noise, light & sound) and consumes valuable farmland  Many urban dwellers are disconnected as we may think our water comes from a faucet, our garbage goes ‘out’ and our food comes from Zehrs ie. We don’t see the areas of production & deposition

3. The importance of water to a city…  Over 40 million people live in the Great Lakes watershed  Natural areas such as moraines that are made up of sand and gravel deposits and that help absorb and filter rain water are being threatened by urban sprawl  As a result of this and the ‘paving over’ of our cities (including creating concrete waterways), cities can’t soak up and filter needed water Oak Ridges Moraine, Toronto

4. Smelly sewage sorrows…  Outdated and poorly maintained sewage systems often leak into groundwater  Sewage treatment plants may only be able to treat 75% of sewage… yup, up to 25% can get through  Despite tighter regulations, once natural waters now contain toxic chemicals and heavy metals from industry and agriculture Ashbridges Bay Treatment Plant, Toronto

5. The ‘ecosystem approach’…  The ‘ecosystem approach’ to living includes 3 principles: 1. Everything is connected 2. Humans are a part of nature (not separate)… 3. Therefore, we have an obligation to other species and ourselves to use our environment sustainably This must include city living.

6. Toronto’s Don River…  Lost its natural recourse and ability to flush itself clean  Its tributaries have been blocked  Lacks the needed oxygen to support life Now…  Treatment plants are improving water quality  Planting of new marsh grasses promoting habitat  Artifical barriers inserted to create air bubbles (oxygen)  Seeing return of aquatic insects and fish Chester Springs Marsh; finished in ’96 as part of ‘Bring back The Don’ program

7. Think before you golf…  Although it’s a great pastime and has added to our local economies, golf courses come at an environmental price…  “Luscious greenery and open spaces are just a few images that go hand in hand with golf courses. In an increasingly urban world these are highly valued intangibles. However, there are real environmental concerns related to potential and actual impacts of irrigation, pesticide, herbicide and fungicide applications, and destruction of wetlands and other habitats due to golf courses. As interest in the game rises, and more golf courses are built, the need for water conservation and protection is also rising”  “The Environmental Institute for Golf is an organization working towards strengthening the relations between the game of golf and the natural environment. It has identified legislation, water quality and quantity, and economic impacts as main issues of water use in golf courses”. Freshwater: A study of golf courses in Canada Justin Timberlake promoting the opening of a new eco-friendly golf course in Tennessee High water use with little regulation and no bans

8. If you plant it, it will grow…  Large push on to plant trees in urban areas in Canada  They raise the water table, increase bird and animal habitat, increase soil production and retention Toronto has used such strategies as free and subsidized tree planting for residential properties Sam Lawrence Park, Hamilton, ON

9. So how did cities grow…and grow?  Between the 1940s and 1970s, fossil fuels were cheap so the average person could afford a life in suburbia so developers built OUT  $ overpowered zoning laws and restrictions and urbanization was, for the most part, seen only as good  Urban planning and growth were largely dictated by the automobile and the lifestyle that went with it

10. So what’s the solution to suburbia?  Urban planners believe we need to stop building OUT and, instead, focus on developing self-sufficient communities/neighbourhoods where we can walk, shop, play and go to school without our car  Trying to get people to question what they most value  Focus on building and living with a smaller footprint; but building codes must change  The threat? 50% more Torontonians in the next 30 years! K-W’s Belmont Village