Proponents of hedonics, or happiness economics, have been gaining influence... [They] assert that, contrary to the guiding principle of a century of economists, income is a poor measure of happiness. Economic growth in England and the U.S. in the past half-century hasn't measurably increased life satisfaction.

Recent studies on life satisfaction show that commuting makes people more unhappy than anything else in life. (It is, apparently, the opposite of sex.) Commuting also happens to rob us of time for family and friends.

The only major Canadian city where commute times didn't shoot up in the past decade was freeway-free Vancouver, where the city stopped adding road capacity in 1997 and has been aggressively "traffic-calming" ever since.

"A city can be friendly to people or it can be friendly to cars, but it can't be both," the new mayor announced. He shelved the highway plans and poured the billions saved into parks, schools, libraries, bike routes and the world's longest "pedestrian freeway."

He increased gas taxes and prohibited car owners from driving during rush hour more than three times per week. He also handed over prime space on the city's main arteries to the Transmilenio, a bus rapid-transit system based on that of Curitiba, Brazil.

Bogotans almost impeached their new mayor. Business owners were outraged. Yet by the end of his three-year term, Mr. Peñalosa was immensely popular and his reforms were being lauded for making Bogota remarkably fairer, more tolerable and more efficient.

Moreover, by shifting the budget away from private cars, Mr. Peñalosa was able to boost school enrolment by 30 per cent, build 1,200 parks, revitalize the core of the city and provide running water to hundreds of thousands of poor.

When Manhattan held a conference in October asking for a prescription for the gridlocked streets of New York, Mr. Peñalosa cheerily suggested banning cars entirely from Broadway.

"He got a standing ovation," observed an astounded Deputy Borough President Rose Pierre-Louis. New York is now considering charging drivers to enter Manhattan.

Mr. Peñalosa was also given a hero's welcome by hundreds of cheering urbanists, planners and politicians at last summer's World Urban Forum in Vancouver. Stuart Ramsey, a B.C. transportation engineer, suggested it was because the Colombian had gone ahead and done what they had all been talking about for years.

"Bogota has demonstrated that it is possible to make dramatic change to how we move around in our cities in a very short time frame," Mr. Ramsey said afterward. "It's simply a matter of choosing to do so."

"We could improve our air quality and dramatically reduce our emissions any time we want. It's easy to do. All it would take is a can of paint and you'd have dedicated bus lanes. It doesn't require huge amounts of money. It simply requires a choice."

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Most traffic lights should be torn up as they make roads less safe, one of Europe's leading road engineers said yesterday.

]]> http://vorg.ca/2079-The-Rise-of-Slime dustin ocean environment catastrophe 2006-08-18T03:50:52-04:00 http://vorg.ca/2079-The-Rise-of-Slime#replies http://vorg.ca/2022-Free-Downtown-Buses-in-Seattle bus rides are free. This seems like a great way to improve people movement and reduce road congestion in the core of the city. I'm interested to learn more about the history of this, and how it's worked out in practice. Some quick searches don't turn up anything though, and my internet access is limited while I'm travelling.

The conference has been good too =). More on that later...]]> http://vorg.ca/2022-Free-Downtown-Buses-in-Seattle dustin seattle environment 2006-06-28T20:58:09-04:00 http://vorg.ca/2022-Free-Downtown-Buses-in-Seattle#replies http://vorg.ca/1903-Critical-Mass---Bikes-on-Parade Vancouver's Critical Mass yesterday. 200 cyclists riding together in a fun filled, human fueled, car displacing celebration of bicycles. It was really fabulous. It was the first time I had gone to such an event, but I am definitely going to be attending regularly from now on. People said that once the summer gets going turnout can increase to 1000+ people!

Cycling is such an awesome way to get around the city. Get your exercise, help the environment, see the sights up close, and it's very cost effective. I find operating my human powered vehicle liberating. Cars will always have their place (long trips, etc), but bikes are so much more fitting for an inter-city commute. I find it pretty sad seeing all the cars with only 1 person in them sitting in traffic. Go get a bike!

Also, at the (very fun) party afterwards somebody brought their drum and we jammed on it for a little while. Just the two of us banging on her little drum outside while some spectators enjoyed it. Very nice. I think I'm going to get myself a drum out here. Then see if I can join a drum circle of some sort, or perhaps try and help incubate a Vancouver version of the Tam Tams.]]> http://vorg.ca/1903-Critical-Mass---Bikes-on-Parade dustin Vancouver environment bikes 2006-04-01T21:22:30-05:00 http://vorg.ca/1903-Critical-Mass---Bikes-on-Parade#replies http://vorg.ca/863-Is-it-a-form-letter?-You-tell-me blurb about recycling. I also emailed it off to some Canadian politicians. Here's a reply from the Ministry of the Environment:

Dear Mr. Sacks:

On behalf of the Honourable David Anderson, I am responding to your e-mail of April 27, suggesting federal government research and funding support of recycling technology.

Environment Canada shares your enthusiasm for waste reduction, the department encourages waste reduction and recognizes pollution prevention as an effective means to promote both economic and environmental sustainability.  Although we have a common concern for environmental protection, it is important to note that the organization of roles and responsibilities in Canada differs among government jurisdictions. 

In Canada, the responsibility for waste management is shared among all government jurisdictions.  Waste collection, diversion and disposal operations are the responsibility of municipal governments; the provinces and territories are responsible for approvals, licensing, and monitoring of operations.  Regional or local waste management issues would only involve the federal government when federal lands or resources are affected, interprovincial or international transport is involved, federal assistance is provided, or, in some instances, the issue involves management of toxic substances.

That said, the management of solid waste remains a challenge in Canada.  Recent Statistics Canada data show that between 1998 and 2000 the total non­hazardous waste generated increased by 12 per cent (to 31.4 million tonnes), while the total amount of waste disposed of in Canada increased by 10 per cent (to 23 million tonnes).  During that same period, total waste diverted from final disposal in our nation increased by 12 per cent (to 7.5 million tonnes).

Reducing the amount of waste we produce is by far the most effective way to battle the flow of garbage into landfill.  To be really effective, we have to incorporate the 4Rs - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Recover into our daily routine.  Materials and packaging that cannot be reused should be recycled at home, work and school.  Individuals can contribute to recycling by purchasing recycled and recyclable products.

For your information, I am attaching an information supplement that outlines several of Environment Canada’s activities in support of recycling. 

The Minister appreciates your interest in this important matter. 

Sincerely,

Original signed by

Cassie J. Doyle
Associate Deputy Minister



Attachment

Information Supplement

Environment Canada Actions on Recycling

Environment Canada, in conjunction with Natural Resources Canada, is currently involved in projects in support of recycling.  Projects currently under way include the following:  

·       Supporting the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) in the production of a guidance manual for municipalities to help increase recycling and composting.  The underlying objective of this project is to treat waste as a resource. 

·       Providing support to the development of an Integrated Waste Management  (IWM) Model being carried out by the University of Waterloo, the Environment Plastic Industry Council, and Corporations Supporting Recycling.  The IWM tool evaluates environmental impacts from all waste management system options (recycling, composting, landfill, incineration and anaerobic digestion), and enables municipalities, from a life-cycle perspective, to examine these options, test scenarios and make sound fact-based decisions on their waste management system plans.

·       Linking recycling and greenhouse gases (GHGs): This project evaluates the life cycle of materials to enable a better understanding of the benefits recycling has on reducing GHGs.

An indirect approach to enhancing the use of recycled materials is the development of industry-operated stewardship initiatives, known as Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programs.  These programs, which exist in many parts of Canada, give industry the responsibility for managing, collecting and funding the recycling of end-of-life products such as electronics waste, used motor oil, leftover paint and waste packaging.  These programs can provide an incentive for manufacturers to improve the environmental performance of their products, through the use of recycled materials and a reduction in the use of toxic materials.  For information on these policies, visit Environment Canada’s EPR Web site, at http://www.ec.gc.ca/epr.

Yet another approach to support increased use of recycled materials is to enhance market support for products that use such materials.  Environment Canada has an eco-labelling program, the Environmental Choice Program (ECP), which determines and promotes higher standards of environmental performance against which products and services can be assessed.  Once a product or service is certified by the ECP, the company is entitled to incorporate Environment Canada’s official mark of environmental leadership, the EcoLogo, in their advertising and promotional efforts.  The Program has established criteria for products made from recycled plastic, and a number of products, including certain brands of garbage bags, plastic sheeting, grocery and retail bags, have been certified under the ECP.  Additional information is available through TerraChoice Environmental Services Inc., the company licensed to administer the Program.  They can be contacted at 1280 Old Innes Road, Suite 801, Ottawa ON  K1B 5M7; 1 800 478­0399; coinfo@terrachoice.ca.  The ECP also maintains a Web site at http://www.environmentalchoice.com.