Excuse Me While I Bang My Head Against the Wall

Sigh.

SIGH.

On days like today, I'm not even sure if "WTF!?" truly captures my reaction to the news. I need a new expression to reflect my complex emotional state after hearing that Canada has officially pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol. NDP Environment critic Megan Leslie put it best when she said, "it's like we're the kid who's failing the class, so we have to drop it before that happens", which as we know from our school days makes everything better.

I don't actually want to rant about this, since I don't want to make myself more miserable than I already am, so instead I'd like to draw your attention to the problem of air pollution in Beijing. Why? Because it gives us present-day proof of how screwed we are if we don't do something about the state of the environment. Last week, the smog in China's capital city was so bad that highways were closed and flights were cancelled because visibility was limited to a few hundred metres. The U.S. Embassy's smog index actually exceeded its upper limit. What's worse than a "hazardous" reading? Critical? Life-threatening? Deadly?

It saddens me that so many people have gotten caught up in debating the merits of measuring one particle vs. another (the Americans like the PM 2.5 standard, the Chinese like PM 10), not because it doesn't matter (it does), but because it detracts from the real problem: the air in northeastern China is a chronic and very dangerous issue. It's possible that breathing in that bad air will reduce life expectancy by five years. What are we going to do about it?

We can start by thinking about the main contributors to air pollution in the Beijing area: vehicles, coal-fired power plants, and industry. While China is on the other side of the planet, I actually feel quite capable of helping to bring about change in these areas by remembering the link between my actions and their consequences:

• cars: I admit to owning one. However, it's very fuel-efficient, and I only drive it once or twice a week. If I had to give it up, I'd probably adjust pretty quickly, never look back, and roll around in all the money I'd be saving. The best part? I would be an excellent role model, showing how great my quality of life can be without having to own a car.


• coal: I am a huge supporter of clean and renewable energy and its ability to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels, thereby mitigating climate change. The more we invest in mixing alternatives into the conventional electricity grid, the sooner we'll develop more efficient green power generation technologies, which will hopefully lead to the whole world turning to renewables.


• stuff: I avoid buying useless crap, especially useless crap made in China. As for those items that are practical and necessary, I try to find the ones that are made domestically, and made without plastic (since so much of it comes from China). Our consumer culture is partially responsible for the dirty clouds billowing out of Chinese factories, and I want no part of it.

My lifestyle impacts my home and work; my city, region, province, and country; and in many ways, the whole planet. The Conservative government believes it is justified in shirking responsibility; I could not disagree more and refuse to allow this country's rapidly declining international reputation to smear my own.


Photo of F grade used under Creative Commons from amboo who? (flickr).
Photo of Beijing traffic used under Creative Commons from poeloq (flickr).

How I Love to Hate Migraines

I was going to prepare a post for today on Monday or Tuesday, but a migraine got in the way. Migraines are my Achilles' heel. I don't take painkillers for tension headaches, menstrual cramps, or aching muscles. But when a migraine hits, my world shuts down, and liquid pain relief capsules that are supposed to begin working within fifteen minutes only manage to take away a tiny portion of my suffering, and that, only after an hour and a half. A swollen fist of pain sits in my temple, putting so much pressure behind my eye that it tears for hours. And there is nothing I can do about it.

It's at times like these that I wonder why this happens to me and so many others. There are obvious factors: stress, anxiety, skipping meals, sleeping too little or too much, and being over-exposed to bright sunlight. I admit my weekend was full of stress and anxiety, and my emotions were on a bit of a rollercoaster, but there have been other times when a migraine has hit for no apparent reason (and vice versa, when those factors were in place but no migraine appeared). What if invisible environmental factors have something to do with it?

Take for example this weekend. I drove out of town for a family reunion. Apparently the whole city had similar plans, this being a long weekend. Both the drive out and back in took two hours longer than usual. That's four hours of inhaling carbon monoxide, unburnt fuel, VOCs, and ozone from nearby tailpipes while idling on an eight-lane highway. Isn't it reasonable to assume that toxic gases + traffic-related stress = migraine for those of us who have a propensity for them?

What about smog? Toronto gets its fair share in the heat of the summer, and that's when I experience more migraines compared to the cold winter months. Since I don't have respiratory or cardiovascular problems, my body might react to smog by unleashing a migraine. I don't think poor air quality and headaches are directly related, but I wonder if migraines are a symptom of overall body stress? "You're polluting me", my body cries out as it pounds that fist into my temple. If you think about my reaction to the pain - going home to sleep it off and staying away from exhaust, toxic cleaning products in public buildings, and the nasty chemicals that hide in the perfume and cologne that so many people like to bathe themselves in - then maybe migraines serve the purpose of isolating me from these poisons.

What do you think? Could there be some validity to this theory, or am I sprouting nonsense because yesterday's migraine killed off some of my brain cells?


Photo used under Creative Commons from Deborah Leigh (flickr).

Friday Feel Good News

It's Friday, and in my books, that means it's time to feel good. Let's set aside the doom-and-gloom stories for a moment and focus on some good news!

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Good news from the province of Quebec today as a new law will go into effect at the end of the month which will tighten the restrictions on the pollution that 5,000 institutions, businesses, and industries are allowed to release into the air.

The overhaul of Quebec's 32-year-old air quality law is expected to reduce smog and acid rain when regulations are made stricter and brand new standards are created. That includes controlling the release of 80 new substances that are linked to serious health problems - this is accomplished by requiring the affected companies to measure their pollution levels and report these to the provincial government. These new standards apply to the aluminum, steel, cement, and pulp and paper industries. Meanwhile, stricter regulations around the release of volatile organic compounds are relevant to paint manufacturers, printers, dry cleaners, and refineries.

The Quebec government wanted to update this legislation years ago but put it off until businesses had a chance to recover from the recession, considering the overhauled law will require them to invest in new pollution-reducing equipment. Despite such expenses, most companies are expected to comply within a year, and those that haven't by July 2013 will be fined up to $50,000.

This is great news for, well, everything that breathes. Air pollution impacts cardiovascular health, which is why those with heart problems are advised to stay indoors on smog days. Public health researchers estimate that over 1,500 deaths in Quebec are caused by poor air quality every year. These are preventable deaths, and I'm relieved that steps are being taken to improve this horrible statistic. If only we could convince other governments to follow suit, especially in those provinces and states with a greater density of polluting industries!


Photo used under Creative Commons from Uwe Hermann (flickr).

It's All Relative

A couple of weeks ago, a report was released that showed improvements in air quality in the province of Ontario between 2000 and 2009. Specifically, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and sulphur dioxide levels in the atmosphere have been decreasing over those years. This is good news for the climate and everybody's health!

I'm sure this favourable outcome has a lot to do with the phasing out of dirty coal-fired power plants, scheduled to be completed by 2014. With frequent reports about China's and India's growing consumption of coal, I'm eager to celebrate every step taken in the right direction to clean our air. Ironically, about half of Ontario's smog blows over from the US (I'm looking at you, heavy industry in Ohio Valley), and that makes me wonder why we (the whole world) aren't trying harder to solve this problem together. After all, the atmosphere doesn't care for political borders. Sure, I'm proud that the province I live in is saying goodbye to coal, but I can't pretend the Alberta tar sands aren't my concern just because I live 3,000 km away - greenhouse gases are greenhouse gases, no matter where the fossil fuels are burned; the global climate is changing even if some countries aren't contributing to the problem at all.

The bottom line? I'm cautiously optimistic. More renewable energy sources are being used where I live, and cleaner technology is being developed for traditional electricity generation. The public is growing increasingly aware of and concerned about the environmental impacts of dirty energy, and many people are taking steps to lower their electricity use. But is it enough, or too little, too late? What do you think?

Photo credit.

Invest In BIXI For a More Sustainable Urban Future

Maybe you're the person who lives outside of the city and likes to come by train to visit every other weekend, then needs a way to get around while here. Or maybe you're the person who doesn't want to invest in a new bike only to have it stolen. Or maybe you're the person heading out to attend an event with friends, but one of you doesn't have their own bike. Or maybe, like me, you'll happily settle for transit (complaining all the while) and walking but believe in making the city more sustainable by reducing vehicle traffic. All are great reasons to register with BIXI Toronto.

This public bike sharing system has already been successfully adopted in Montreal, London, Washington DC, Minneapolis, and Melbourne, and Toronto will follow suit if 1,000 people sign up for a 12-month membership by the end of November. For $95, you will be able to sign out a bike at one of 80 solar-powered docking stations positioned every 300 metres south of Bloor between Spadina and Jarvis, ride it to run an errand, cross town, or just look really cool, then drop it off at any station on the network and enjoy no additional fee as long as your trip took less than 30 minutes.

The bikes themselves are sturdy yet lightweight with aluminum frames, easily adjustable seats, a front rack, lights which are activated when the bike is in motion, and best of all, they're designed and built in Canada. The docking stations, as mentioned above, are powered by the sun, wireless, and require no digging to be installed! In fact, the systems are modular and designed to be so portable that it can take as few as 20 minutes for a team of two to set them up in a new location, which is especially useful for two-day festivals on weekends in areas otherwise unserviced by BIXI.

Once the network has been set up (again, provided a total of at least 1,000 memberships are sold in the next two months), riders can opt for 1-month or 12-month subscriptions purchased online, whereas occasional users can just step up to a docking station and buy a 24-hour pass and make as many 30-minute trips as they'd like over the course of the day. Longer trips cost extra but can be easily avoided by using the bikes only for one-way trips - you don't normally call a taxi to take you to the airport, wait there while you vacation in the south, then bring you home again two weeks later. Hence the name, bicycle + taxi = bixi. It sounds better in French!

Bike sharing systems are important. For everyone's sake, we need to reduce the number of vehicles in use, improve air quality, and allow everyone access to sustainable methods of transportation. BIXI not only brings us closer to these goals but also offers convenience and security. Imagine leaving your own bike at home (or not having to buy one in the first place) yet being able to ride whenever and wherever you need to without having to carry heavy locks, spend time and money on maintenance and accessories, worry about having your own bike stolen, or wonder if the subway will be too crowded to fit your bike when you bring it all the way from home.

The plan is to have 1,000 12-month memberships sold by the end of November (which hasn't happened yet) so that the system can be put into place about six months later, just in time for beautiful cycling weather. Subsequently, use of the program is expected to increase as the bikes and docking stations will be everywhere and pretty much advertise themselves. This will allow the network to be expanded and the number of bikes to increase. So even if you don't live in the proposed service area, invest in the system today to make use of it tomorrow. This is just like raising capital to start up a business, but without having to worry about whether it will take off: the statistics from Montreal prove just how successful the program can be!

• in its first year (2009), 1.14 million BIXI trips were made, 10,775 riders purchased 1-yr subscriptions, and over 100,000 24-hour passes were used
• 86% of 2009 subscribers intended to renew for 2010
• 91% of Montrealers are aware of the BIXI program
• the system expanded from 3,000 bikes at 300 stations when it launched in May 2009 to 5,000 bikes at 400 stations within six months!
• there were 20,000 subscribers by May 2010, just one year after the program was started!

I hope you will give this some thought, talk about it with your family, friends, and colleagues, and of course, register by November 30th, 2010! (Don't worry, you will receive a full refund if the target isn't met.)