I can't say that I feel an overwhelming urge to try something new at the start of the new year, but I can assure you that many people do. My friends have been pestering me to reveal my new year's resolution for 2013 and most of my answers have been met with some rather underwhelmed expressions. I guess you can't get away with "typical" resolutions when you are a sustainability manager. So I started to do a little bit of research about what would be an appropriate resolution for 2013, you know one that is meaningful and easy to do and is good for the planet. But at the same time, the resolution has to be a bit of a sacrifice  I decided to narrow down my resolution to something related to CO2 production. I know that there are a lot of other issues out there to focus on but with so many of my friends coming back from DOHA with stories to tell, it kind of seemed like the right thing to do for this year. The next challenge was to find one of the biggest sources...

Photo credit: Jonathan Rausseo To recap my last blog on greenhouse gases (GHG’s) and waste: Items sent to landfill NEVER decompose, except organics; When organics decompose in a landfill, they produce methane (20X the impact of CO2); If you choose to compost 1 ton of organics, you will sequester 0.2 tons of CO2; If you choose to send that ton to a landfill, you would create 0.8 tons of CO2 Now let’s talk about uOttawa’s waste production and recycling rate; what do they mean in terms of GHG’s? Do we recycle and compost enough to cover the GHG’s emitted due to waste disposal and landfilling? Before I go on, I must say that whatever the result, nothing needs to be sent to landfill if you choose the right products – nothing will ever make entombing perfectly usable ressources in a landfill reasonable (even sequestering GHG’s!). Last year, the University sent 1082 tons of waste to the Trail rd. landfill, and 1105 tons of recyclable material (of which 98 tons were organics) to...

Je trouve que les gens ne sont pas nécessairement conscients de l’impact qu’à leur production de déchets personnelle sur l’environnement. Oui, c’est vrai, la plus part des gens recyclent parce qu’ils ont appris que c’est la bonne chose à faire (ce qui est formidable!) et que nous épargnons beaucoup d’énergie et ressources lors de la production d’un article recyclé (bonus!).  Mais j’ai souvent le sentiment que les gens agissent comme si le « mouvement » du recyclage est un peu passé. J’utilise des exemples d’étudiants qui ne veulent plus travailler sur des initiatives de recyclage dans leurs écoles (le recyclage est une initiative des années 90’!); ou des personnes qui croient réellement que l’article qu’il ou elle recycle n’aura pas d’impact direct sur l’environnement. Ils se disent : ‘Qu’est-ce que ça fait si je ne recycle pas cette bouteille?’ Ou ‘C’est juste UNE pelure de fruit!’.  Bien, j’ai des nouvelles pour vous! Cette bouteille et cette pelure ont un impact di...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo I just got this letter from our partners at LOOP TECHNOLOGIES. They were the group that helped u s with our new Sports Field; specifically, making sure that there is a hefty does of sustainability involved. I thought that I would share it with you. The depths to which they are willing to go to make sure that we made the best choice for the environment are ... well they are simply fantastic. "We want to share some interesting sustainability information with you regarding the Matt Anthony Field Replacement project. L.M.L chose to ship the new turf rolls from Atlanta, Georgia to Montreal, Quebec via rail, rather than truck. Using standard emissions factors produced by the US EPA, we can estimate the CO2 emissions of various methods of freight transportation. We used the following assumptions to determine the approximate CO2 produced for both rail and truck transportation: Assumptions: Freight Distance (truck or rail): 1,200 miles (1,920 kms) Weight of...

Photo Credit: Jonathan Rausseo As I sit in my office surrounded by literally over 100 plants I can't help but wonder how I got here. Co-workers pass by and constantly ask if they can have one, but I deny them any access to the precious plants. "No, these plants are for science!" I exclaim. Let's back up. A couple of months ago I got an e-mail from Dr Scott Findlay about EVS 3101 . Every year Scott teaches the course and every year he makes sure to contact the science community and ask them if we have an interesting project for his students. Every year I submit a couple of ideas and every year I never get any takers, but this year I only submitted one. I can't quite explain why but it seemed like this was the big one... the experiment that would help make a difference. And so, this year, unlike any other year, my project was accepted. A group of three students will study the impact of indoor plants on the air quality of a classroom. I guess I should explain why I ...

Photo credit: wallflowerstudioseeds.blogspot.com/ Je ne vous apprends rien si je vous dits que l’état de notre planète est mal et qu’il est temps d’agir, et ce sur tous les plans. Il existe plusieurs petits gestes que l’on peut poser quotidiennement qui minimisent nos impacts négatifs sur l’écosystème fragile de la terre. Ces actions peuvent être aussi simples qu’avoir un sac réutilisable sur soi pour minimiser et pourquoi pas éliminer notre utilisation de sac en plastique; recycler tout ce qui se recycler et composter si vous avez un grand jardin ou si votre municipalité a mis en place un système de compostage. Il y a aussi l’étiquetage des produits qui indique leur empreinte carbone. Personnellement, je crois que c’est une bonne mesure pour diminuer nos impacts partout, mais spécialement pour nous, ci au Canada parce que nous vivons dans un pays septentrional. Laissez-moi vous expliquer pourquoi après cette courte définition. D’après le dictionnaire de l’environnement le terme « Empr...