Confirmation of Minutes

 

On motion by Councillor Walker, the Minutes of the Meeting of the Parks and Environment Committee held on April 20, 2009, were confirmed.

The Parks and Environment Committee recommends that:

 

1.         City Council accept the in-kind contribution of construction supervision and general labour, valued at $235,000.00, provided by Sir Sandford Fleming College of Applied Arts and Technology (“Fleming College”) to construct The Children’s Teaching Kitchen in High Park (the “Project”).

 

2.         City Council authorize the selection of Fleming College on a sole source basis as a pre-selected subcontractor on the Project.

 

3.         City Council waive the City’s Fair Wage Policy as it applies to Fleming College as a subcontractor under a City contract; and

 

4.         City Council authorize the General Manager of Parks, Forestry and Recreation to enter into appropriate contracts with Fleming College in relation to the contribution, on terms and conditions and satisfactory in form and content to the General Manager and the City Solicitor.

The Parks and Environment recommends that:

 

1.         City Council support, in principle, the ongoing coordination by the General Manager of Parks, Forestry and Recreation and the Director of the Toronto Environment Office of Interdivisional Strategies and Initiatives that will achieve the overall goal of expanding opportunities for local food production and other urban agricultural activities in the City of Toronto; and

 

2.         City Council request the Interdivisional Working Group, as part of their work plan, to develop an inventory of City lands which could be made available for urban agricultural opportunities.

The Parks and Environment Committee:

 

1.         requested the Director, Toronto Environment Office to continue to provide annual reports regarding the emissions that are reported to the National Pollution Release Inventory (NPRI) in Toronto and that he continue to collaborate with Toronto Public Health to produce these reports; and

 

2.         thanked staff for their excellent work in creating a summary of the National Pollution Release Inventory Highlights.

This report provides information about emissions reported to the National Pollution Release Inventory (“NPRI”) by large facilities across Toronto for 2006 and 2007 (the most recent years for which verified data has been published), and updates a previous report on emissions tracked by the NPRI up to and including 2005. Compared to 2005, fewer facilities reported to NPRI and the total releases of common air contaminants and other substances decreased in 2007.  In 2007, a total of 305 facilities in Toronto reported their releases to the NPRI.  Twenty eight (or 8 percent) fewer facilities reported in 2007 than in 2005.  Total tonnes released to air decreased by 20 percent between 2005 and 2007.  Common air contaminant releases decreased by 20 percent and releases of other air toxics decreased by 16 percent in the same period.  The total releases to water decreased from 2005 to 2007, with fewer releases in 2006 than 2007.  Releases to land remain negligible.

 

The NPRI program gathers data about the mass of pollutants released into the environment. NPRI data reflect emissions of large facilities only, so the data only represent a portion of the pollutants released and transferred to the environment in Toronto.  Pollution also enters the environment from non-NPRI sources, including small businesses, vehicles, homes, and pollution that is transported from elsewhere.  The health effects of pollutants depend strongly on the toxicity of released substances and the actual concentrations that reach people, as well as their exposure and sensitivity to such substances.  Health-based priorities for emissions reduction may be different than priorities based on mass alone.  Beginning in 2012, Toronto’s new Environmental Reporting, Disclosure and Innovation program will add new data on chemical release and usage for 25 priority chemicals from smaller Toronto facilities. 

 

This report was prepared in collaboration with Toronto Public Health.

The Société d’histoire de Toronto’s mandate is to develop interest in local French history and help in the preservation of historical sites.  For over a decade, they have been strongly advocating for the creation of a historical park or a heritage greenway along the Humber River. The project area is comprised of all public lands along the Humber River, south of Dundas Street to the mouth of the River. This site is one of the richest historical sites in Canada since on this location all three founding people of Canada and Toronto, First Nations, French and British met and traded.

 

In creating this Historical Park, the Société wishes to take advantage of the existing park and trail network, and to capitalize upon the Humber River’s natural and cultural heritage.  The Humber was designated a Canadian Heritage River in 1999.  The Historical Park will highlight the inter-relationship of the First Nations, French and English – The Shared Path – along the Humber river.  To highlight this historical link, the proposed name of the historical park is the Sentier partagé/Shared Path.

 

To raise awareness about this project, the Société d'histoire de Toronto would like to also propose a temporary exhibition about the Historical Park and Toronto's French history at the nearby Old Mill subway station. They would also like to explore whether some sort of permanent historical installation would be feasible at the station that would tie it in to the Historical Park project concept.

 

The Société d'histoire de Toronto has also received a $95,000.00 grant, spread over three years, from  the Ontario Trillium Foundation, to inform the public about the Sentierpartagé/Shared Path and to create a strategic plan to successfully implement the project, in collaboration with various partners.

Forwarding its decision of June 15, 2009 on the report  (June 3, 2009) from the Medical Officer of Health, entitled “Air Quality Impact Assessment – Metrolinx Georgetown South Service Expansion and Union-Pearson Rail Link”.