Maude Barlow

Community concerns about the implications of the proposed Alliston-Melancthon mega-quarry are growing. Now, environmental activist Maude Barlow brings her take on the project to the Georgian College Theatre, Barrie Campus, on March 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Barlow, chairperson of the Council of Canadians, has campaigned for years to raise awareness of threats to Canada’s drinking water resources, among other issues. The Council of Canadians is among the key players in the drive to oppose the Highland Companies plans for a huge open-pit mine on 2,316 acres of prime farmland it has assembled in Melancthon Township near Shelburne.

The mega-quarry proposal is raising objections for many reasons. The six-billion tonne quarry would be the second largest in North America, reaching deep below the water table. At 200 feet, the quarry would be deeper than the height of Niagara Falls, and would displace 600 million litres of fresh water per day. Depending on demand, up to 300 trucks per hour could haul gravel south to fuel the Greater Toronto area’s demand for gravel. Blasting would continue daily. The pit would also destroy Class One agricultural land that is a prime location for specialised potato production.

Highland says the project would create local jobs and benefit the Ontario economy. The firm, backed by Canadian and US investors, says it would eventually restore the land to agricultural use, 300 acres at a time.

The proposal has now been referred for a full-scale Environmental Assessment by the Ontario government.

Barlow’s talk is the next instalment in the annual speakers’ series, sponsored by the University Partnership Centre. Barlow most recently appeared at Georgian in 2006, when she spoke about the fate of Canada’s freshwater resources.

Tickets for the event are $12 for the public and $6 for students. They can be purchased at

• the Georgian College Bookstore, in person on online at www.georgianstores.com
• at Page and Turners bookstore at 123 Dunlop St. E., Barrie
• or at the door.

National Sweater Day 2012

On Feb. 9, Georgian staff and students are being asked to pull on a fun sweater at school and turn down the heat at home by two degrees. Why? It’s National Sweater Day.

Sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund nationwide, National Sweater Day is meant to build awareness of  how we use energy  and how everyone can play an important role in fighting climate change by using energy wisely, not wastefully.

With so many Canadians looking for ways to help fight climate change in their everyday lives, reducing energy consumption is an effective way to take action. This event will show Canadians how simple actions can have a big impact.

For a variety of reasons it is not practical to turn down the heat at Georgian campuses for just one day (heating and cooling are already maintained electronically to make the most efficient use of energy).

But Dianne Corrigan, Georgian Environmental Sustainability co-ordinator and her sustainability committee members are encouraging staff and students to pull on sweaters as part of the energy awareness campaign.

For more details about the national campaign, visit www.sweaterday.ca

The official worldwide Earth Day is set for April 22, but that falls on a Sunday. As well, Georgian needs to set a date that allows students to take part without jeopardizing exams and end-of-semester activities.

Each campus celebrates the day a little differently, but campus clean-ups generally form the bulk of the activities for staff and students.

Watch for announcements in coming week about Earth Day 2012 activities and contests.

The second annual Every Day is Earth Day contest, sponsored by the Environmental Sustainability Committee, is intended to

• raise environmental awareness across the College
• engage staff and faculty at all Georgian campuses to undertake initiatives that support environmental best practices.

Prizes:

The winning submission will earn lunch for every member of the team in a Georgian College dining facility, a photo opportunity with President Brian Tamblyn and coverage on the Georgian website and in College Capsule. Plus, your ideas will be added to the bank of Georgian’s best practices.

Eligibility:

• Contest is open to full or part-time staff and faculty and teams of up to 20 members.
• Deadline for entries is April 1, 2012.
• All green initiatives must have been implemented by contest participants – they must be well beyond the proposal stage.
• The entries will be evaluated by members of Georgian Environmental Sustainability Committee. Winners will be announced during Georgian’s Earth Week celebrations on April 12.

Entry procedure:

Use the official entry form, Everyday is_Earth_Day_application form. If you have additional questions, contact Environmental Sustainability Co-ordinator Dianne Corrigan at ext. 1752 or dcorrigan@georgianc.on.ca

Need inspiration?

Take a look at the winning ideas from 2011:  http://www.georgianc.on.ca/environment/news/every-day-is-earth-day-contest-winners-honoured/

Dianne Corrigan with Barrie Campus writing instruments collection bin

We all have some of them lurking in our desk drawers – old dried up pens, pencil stubs and highlighters that can’t highlight much any more.

If you’re loathe to simply throw them out, help is on the way.  Georgian is now offering recycling bins at each main campus for pens, pencils, highlighters and markers.

• The Barrie Campus bin is located outside the Bookstore. 
• The Orillia Campus bin can be found in the front lobby outside Campus Connection.

The writing instruments will be collected for disassembly and recycling via the Newell Rubbermaid Corporation.

Even better, Newell Rubbermaid will donate two cents to a charity of Georgian’s choice for each piece carrying a specific brand name:

• PaperMate
• Sharpie
• Expo
• Uniball

The Environmental Sustainability Committee has determined that funds generated in 2011 at the Barrie Campus will be donated to the Barrie Food Bank and those generated in 2012 will be directed to the Grocery Assistance Program.

Winners of the Every Day is Earth Day contest were rewarded last week with a lunch with Brian Tamblyn and representatives of the Environmental Sustainability Committee. Taking part were, from left, Dianne Corrigan, Tim Green, Cindy Mutchler, Romy Boorman, Cathy Neuss, Richard Thomson, Sara Tuck, Cathy Torella, Brian Muscat, Marina Morely, Brian Tamblyn, Andrea Cook, and Katie Peddell. Members of the Hairstyling Apprenticeship team were unable to attend.

Georgian President and CEO Brian Tamblyn sat down for lunch in the Georgian Dining Room recently with almost a dozen staff members to recognize their leadership in making Georgian departments greener. The employees were winners of the first Every Day is Earth Day contest, which encouraged staff to submit initiatives that they have implemented on the job.

The results were impressive, and for the inaugural contest, the Environmental Sustainability Committee granted three top prizes. Winners were:

• Housing, Residence Life and Conference Services for a wide-ranging strategy that includes battery recycling, reusable plates and cutlery, recycling of guest soaps and old towels, and an increase in electronic recordkeeping to significantly reduce paper use.
• Hairstyling Apprenticeship program for recycling foils and hair cuttings. The foils, which are covered in developer, bleach and colouring chemicals, are now collected for professional recycling. Hair clippings are also recycled for such uses as fertilizers and containment dykes for oil spills.
• Office of the Registrar for changes in the design and printing of major publications such as the Academic Calendar and folders containing acceptance information for new students, as of August 2010. Print specifications were changed to ensure the printer is Forest Stewardship Council certified and that recycled paper and vegetable-based inks are used. Design changes, paper size and page count were all changed to use less volume of paper overall.

Watch Staff News in coming months for details of the 2012 Every Day is Earth Day contest. All initiatives must actually be in use in your department at the time of entry submission.

The use of styrofoam has now been eliminated completely at all campuses, and Chartwells is continuing to add more local food ingredients where possible.

In Owen Sound, the company has been able to switch from disposable cutlery and plates to china and metal utensils for those who wish to use them. Similar initiatives are being considered in long-term plans for the Barrie Campus dining facilities.

To book a unit or units, contact Tannis Peacock at ext. 5214.

Staff and students have been dropping off hundreds of batteries in the low-tech buckets placed at each campus by the Environmental Sustainability Committee and Physical Resources. Until the recent changes by Stewardship Ontario, Georgian had to pay $165 per bucket. Now, those costs are covered.

New battery recycling display units are coming to each campus soon, complete with descriptions of what kinds of batteries are accepted.

• At the Barrie Campus, units will be placed outside the Tim Horton’s at the main cafeteria and in the Student Life/Athletic Centre.
• Eight more will be distributed throughout the other campuses. Remember to tape the battery terminals before depositing the batteries in the units.

On Earth Day, April 22, Georgian was named one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for 2011 – the second consecutive year that the college has won the award.

Canada’s Greenest Employers are selected each year by the editors of Canada’s Top 100 Employers, a division of Toronto-based Mediacorp Canada Inc.

Now in its fifth year, the national award recognizes employers that lead the nation in making environmental values part of their organizational culture.

“Winning this award two years in a row confirms Georgian’s status as a leader in sustainable development,” said Georgian President and CEO Brian Tamblyn.

“This recognizes our efforts to engage students and staff  to create a culture that highlights the importance of responsible actions for the sake of the environment.”

Georgian is being recognized for its strategy of advancing and promoting three environmental priorities: waste reduction and diversion, enhanced environmental literacy and increased scrutiny of sustainability issues when purchasing goods and services. Georgian’s staff and students continue working and learning together to achieve these objectives.

New initiatives implemented in the past yea r include

• e-waste recycling depots at all campuses

• expansion of the “hydration station” project, which provides free chilled and filtered water for staff and students with refillable water bottles.

• Major progress continues on the recycling front. The amount of material that leaves Georgian campuses for recycling has increased to 55 per cent, up from 22 per cent in 2008. Previously, this material was heading directly for landfill sites.

“I am proud that Georgian College and our employees continue to be recognized for our commitment to reducing our environmental impact and having environmentally responsible business activities,” said Dianne Corrigan, Georgian College’s environmental sustainability co-ordinator.

“Georgian has taken a leadership role in demonstrating how a large organization can find practical ways to incorporate environmentally friendly practices in its operations. It is a series of small steps that collectively make a significant difference, but there is still a lot of work to be done on this journey.”