Toronto Tourism Magazine 2009 - (Page 51)

In 2004, Toronto became the largest municipality to BAN the commercial or cosmetic application of PESTICIDES composters for years as a way to divert waste from landﬁll and turn it into free natural fertilizer while you’re at it, but not everyone can make that commitment. The city program makes composting easy and as Green Bins are collected weekly — while garbage is collected only biweekly and at a cost — the incentive to put all that smelly organic matter into the right bin is huge. So a third less waste is being trucked to faraway landﬁll sites, and the resulting compost is used on city parks and nearby farmland. An elegant solution indeed. As any parent in Toronto will tell you, the most valuable green aspect of this city is its collection of green spaces, places to raise the next generation of nature-loving urbanites. In spite of our bulging population, Toronto is still a collection of great neighbourhoods, most of which are dotted with plenty of parks and trees. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to travel over the city by helicopter for work, and I was amazed at how much of the view from the air is green. Thanks to a recent bylaw, all those green spaces are pesticide-free. In 2004, Toronto became the largest municipality in the world to ban the cosmetic use of lawn and garden pesticides. The Sierra Club of Canada reports a clear link between pesticide use and breast cancer; many other studies have shown the dangers to children from chemical exposure to pesticides. And what kills bugs on plants also causes damage to other birds and wildlife. So Torontonians can take comfort that homeowners, renters, lawn-care companies, golf courses and property managers are all subject to a ﬁne of up to $5,000 for applying pesticides. Did You Know… More and more, Toronto is becoming a go-to city for green meetings and conventions. The Metro Toronto Convention Centre not only has a green roof, but it also offers “zerowaste“ events where thousands of participants can meet for several days and not a single garbage bag will go to landﬁll. Also downtown, the Direct Energy Centre has its own windmill on site that will make the centre – along with the adjacent new Allstream Centre opening this year – energy self-sufﬁcient by 2010. The Toronto Congress Centre and International Centre, both close to Toronto Pearson International Airport, recently completed major expansions reﬂecting the best sustainable practices. In fact, so impressive are the city’s achievements that the U.S. Green Building Council has chosen Toronto as the location for its ﬁrst out-of-country meeting. TORONTO 2009 | 51

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Toronto Tourism Magazine 2009

Toronto Tourism Magazine 2009
Contents

Contributors

Welcome

Cityscapes

Toast of the Town

In the Night Garden

Gooooal!

Take a Moment

Faces of Toronto

Red Rocket

Past Perfection

Water Lust

The Artist’s City

Living the Green Dream

York Region and North Toronto

Mississauga Marvels

Vine Country

Discovery Walks

Neighbourhoods of Greater Toronto

Listings

Visitor Resources

2009 Event Calendar

Parting Shot

Toronto Tourism Magazine 2009

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