Pelham Today
Summary
A local environmental group, 50by30Niagara, wants the Region and its 12 sub-municipalities to reduce carbon emissions 50 percent by the year 2030, on the way to eliminating emissions completely by 2050. The group maintains that municipal emissions come primarily from buildings, transportation, municipal waste, agriculture, and industry. Protecting and enhancing existing green infrastructure is a priority for the organization.
What can individuals in society do to support the green cause?
“Homeowners should get a heat pump,” said Sawatzky. “That helps an awful lot. But it takes more than individual action. There are a number of large developments that are in the very beginning phases right now in Niagara, which will build homes for thousands of people. It would be far more expensive for building owners to retrofit 20 years down the road. They should act responsibly right now.”
Sawatzky referenced “district heating” as a “phenomenal energy solution, a way to combine a bunch of buildings together and have them share one heat source. It's been around for well over 100 years across North America, so it's a readily available source. It’s fossil fuel-free. We can do it with geothermal ground source. Wastewater treatment plants are a fantastic source for district heating, the energy efficiencies around that are about six to one for every one unit of energy that goes in, you get six units of energy out. There's nothing that competes with that.”
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