There is a lot happening regarding sustainability initiatives in the City of Cornwall. We have been busy updating the corporate and community greenhouse gas inventory for an end-of-year update; engaging staff and stakeholders in climate risk and vulnerabilities for climate adaptation; completing the City’s first net-zero-ready building; developing a tree protection by-law; and applying to grants…to name a few.
Recently, David Bigelow, the City’s Fleet Coordinator and I did a presentation titled “Technical Barriers to Climate Action Implementation” for a webinar series co-hosted by Climate Reality Project Canada, Climate Caucus, the Clean Air Partnership, and the Tamarack Institute. We talked about the City’s continuation of heat pump installation in all new community housing construction and major retrofits; the City’s fleet transition plan to shift from light-duty fleet to electric vehicles (EV); and the City’s current and future interest in battery-operated landscaping equipment. Some technical barriers include energy retrofits in older buildings with transformer and electrical panel upgrades required, as well as space needed for heat pump condensing units. Costs and availability are the main concerns for the City’s plan to move from gas-powered engines to electric vehicles. For example, in 2024, Paramedic Services travelled approximately 1,400,000 kilometers in 2024 year using gas powered vehicles. However, the existing available EV ambulances only have a range of about 280 km and cost three times as much as a typical combustion engine ambulance.
Katelyn Tozer, the Supervisor of Climate Transition & Sustainability, Region of Waterloo also presented their region’s technical barriers to climate action implementation. It was a good opportunity to share what Cornwall is doing and to learn about the technical barriers other municipalities are experiencing.
I’m very excited that pawpaw trees have been added to the edible garden at Mattice Park. A pawpaw is a small deciduous tree native to southern Ontario and the eastern United States. It produces a large, yellowish green to brown fruit. The fruit taste like a combination of banana, pineapple and mango. The fruit is the largest of any native tree in North America, but the flowers have an unpleasant smell. This smell attracts beetles and flies as pollinators. It will take the newly planted pawpaw trees anywhere from 2-6 years to produce fruit. I’m looking forward to seeing the fruit on these trees!
The City’s Environment and Climate Change Committee along with the Youth for Climate Action Working Group recently toured the landfill and recycling plant. This experience allowed the groups to witness firsthand the processes behind waste management and recycling in our community. Anyone can tour the landfill virtually. Check out the virtual landfill tour at https://www.cornwall.ca/en/live-here/waste-management-facilities.aspx.
Finally, Cornwall has officially been awarded Bird Friendly City status by Nature Canada! This recognition is a testament to our community’s commitment to protecting and supporting our birds through conservation, education, and action. If you are at Grey’s Creek, you can view a bird friendly door on the west side of the Raisin Region Conservation Authority’s office building. Window decals were installed by Cornwall’s Bird Friendly Team as a demo site to showcase a way to reduce bird window collisions. Follow Bird Friendly Cornwall on Facebook and Instagram.
Do you have a local sustainability story that you’d like to share? I would love to hear from you. Email sustainability@cornwall.ca.
