Dear Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour,
April/May are the best months for clean-ups. We didn’t organize anything official this year due to COVID but please do consider taking a couple of hours and helping clean up the Inner Harbour shoreline and the K&P Trail. This picture is from a couple of weekends ago thanks so Susan Phillips. Two of us (Thanks Bob MacInnes) collected 15 bags of garbage in the section from River Street to the trail gate.. A clean-up organized by the HUB is happening today, tomorrow and the next day if you would like to help. Details below.
UPCOMING LOCAL EVENTS AND CONCERNS
1. Integrated Care Hub’s 3-day Inner HarbourClean-Up, May 3/4/5
2. Doug Ford’s Climate Policies on Zoom, May 3
3. Tree Motion to Council, May 3
4. Marine Museum’s Indigenous Program Coordinator Job Posting, Deadline May 5
5.” Water on Fire” Exciting Event in Doug Fluhrer Park, May 6: 7:30
6. All Provincial Candidates Debate on Climate, May 10
7. Seth Klein Community Zoom Event May 16
8. Update from No Clearcuts in Kingston
9. Stolen Car Purchased from Thieves by Kingston Scrap Yard
10. Kingston Health Advisors Petition for Decriminalization
11. Kingston Home Share Initiative
FROM FAR AND WIDE
12. Half Century of International Water Quality Agreement
13. Ballast Regulations to Reduce Invasive Species
14. Review of Water Level Concerns
15. Picton Terminals
16. Great Lakes Connection Newsletter Link
17. Support for Turtle Habitat Shoreline Protection vs. Dredging
FUN STUFF
18. 100+ Medicinal Plants and their Uses
19. Morel Mushroom Recipes
20. Kingston Councillor Jeff McLaren on TVO’s Political Blind Date
21. Pump House Museum’s 400 Years of Transportation Exhibit
UPCOMING LOCAL EVENTS AND CONCERNS
1. Integrated Care Hub’s 3 day Inner Harbour Clean-Up, May 3/4/5
The Integrated Care Hub is hosting a 3-day Community Clean-up extravaganza in/around the Belle Park woods behind the ICH on May 3rd, 4th & 5th. Our goal is to give back to our neighbourhood and community, and to restore mother nature’s beauty!
Looking for community volunteers for support during this clean-up. Duties will include collecting/bagging garbage, clearing and removing large items and debris, and safely disposing of used syringes/harm reduction supplies.
NOTE: NO items from active encampment sites will be removed. The idea is to support neighbours in tents, to help, not judge.
The cleanup will be starting around 10am each day, and we are asking all volunteers to show up on time for a quick briefing/orientation. All safety equipment (vest, gloves, garbage pickers, PPE, etc.) will be provided. Snacks, refreshments, and pizza for lunch will be available as well!
While we may have to postpone due to weather, over all the woods can be a mucky place, so please dress accordingly! If forced to postpone, updates will be posted via social media as early as possible.
To sign up or if you have any further questions, please email parker.robb@trellishiv.ca
2. Doug Ford on Climate
What: “Doug Ford’s Climate Crimes: Indictment on 33 Counts
Who: Time4Action
When: Tuesday, May 3, 7:30 pm
Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvdeivqjItG91wVFj6DBgY83KciNsE25C7
3. Tree Motion to Council May 3
Moved by Councillor Osanic
Seconded by Councillor Chapelle
“Whereas the City of Kingston has had numerous woodlands cut down south of the 401 over the last year for development with more woodlands to come up for development in the next short while
Whereas residents have expressed growing concern to their councillors about the clear cuts and the loss of biodiversity and wildlife habitat that the woodlands had contained
Therefore Be It Resolved that council direct staff to
map out the existing woodlands within the urban boundary, identifying which woodlands are owned by the city and which are held in private ownership, and
provide strategies for council’s consideration to protect Kingston’s remaining woodlands within the urban boundary
NOTES:
1. Thanks so very much Lisa and Simon for caring and acting to save Kingston trees!
To express your support email mayor&council@cityofkingston.ca – copying City Clerk John Bolognone jbolognone@cityofkingston.ca – and request that it be considered official correspondence on this file.
2. A multi-year forestry operating plan will be brought forward to Council in summer 2022.
This will include initiatives to support goals outlined in the Urban Forest Management Plan and Council’s priority to increase the tree canopy.
* Climate change will be a major lens of focus for the next review of the Official Plan to be initiated in 2023. The review will identify barriers and opportunities for sustainable development, with a focus on the strategic location of new housing, employment areas and a review of densification targets in locations that facilitate enhanced multi-modal living and walkability.
* After the completion of the Official Plan review, staff intend to undertake a review of the Tree By-Law to identify opportunities for greater tree retention/preservation to assist with maintaining the existing tree canopy.
4. Marine Museum’s Indigenous Program Coordinator Job Posting
The Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston seeks an Indigenous Program Coordinator with excellent research and communication skills to research, develop and deliver a pilot program for an on-the-water Indigenous environmental experiential paddle tour. Funded by the Community Foundation for Kingston and Area, this program will offer an opportunity for public groups to connect culturally through a shared interest and commitment to the environment, encouraging particicpants to adopt a two-eyed way of seeing.
Application deadline May 5, 2022
Read more and apply here.
5. “Water on Fire” Exciting Event in Doug Fluhrer Park, May 6: 7:30
What: Amazing Event.
Where: Doug Fluhrer Park
Who: Presented by Calliope Collective and Kiki Belle
When: 7:30 – 8:30 pm
More Info?https://www.facebook.com/events/383111937153390/?ref=newsfeed
6. All Provincial Candidates Debate on Climate
Who: Just Recovery Kingston & Providence Care
What: Zoom meeting
Why: The next several months are pivotal for Kingston’s response to the climate emergency.
– We will insist that council and staff move forward with a 50% CO2 reduction by 2030 target, in line with science.
– We will be electing a new Member of Provincial Parliament, and a new city council.
– We need climate champions who are committed to Kingston meeting the climate crisis with the seriousness and creativity it demands.
When: May 10, 7:00 – 8:30
Registration:Please click this link to register.
7. Seth Klein Community Zoom Event, May 16
What: Join the discussion with Seth Klein on how Canada can respond to the climate emergency where Seth outlines how employment concerns and climate change can be aligned. It is not an either/or choice. Mobilization to a worldwide pandemic has demonstrated that leadership, joint effort and investment by government, industry, media and citizenry is possible. In the face of a climate emergency, Seth Klein draws analogies from historical wartime mobilization to retool our economy in the space of a few years, improving health outcomes while reducing social inequality. If not now, when?
When: Monday, May 16, 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Who: Seth Klein has been immersed in climate change and inequality issues for his working life. He is currently the Team Lead and Director of Strategy with the Climate Emergency Unit (a five-year project with the David Suzuki Institute). Seth served for 22 years (1996-2018) as the founding BC Director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, a public policy research institute committed to social, economic, and environmental justice.
Seth lives in East Vancouver with his partner Christine Boyle and two children. He has been listed by Vancouver Magazine as one of the 50 most powerful people in the city, and by Homemakers Magazine among the “60 men we love”. He does not know how he ended up on either list, but he humbly accepts the latter.
About the Organizers:
The host organizations represent Kingston citizens, brothers, sisters, friends, acquaintances, and grandparents that want to engage our community in this narrowing climate window and spur our community to action. Growing up, working, raising our families, supporting the many and diverse community charities and not-for-profits in Kingston is our and everyone’s legacy that is threatened by the climate crisis.
“Fifteen metropolitan areas were identified as most at-risk for extreme heat in the future. A total of 17 million Canadians lived in these communities, per 2020 Statistics Canada estimates.” Alex McKeen, The Toronto Star – April 19, 2022, Kingston is one of these cities.
Kingston will continue to feel the increasing effects of climate emergency and the key to tackling these issues means bringing our friends, family, neighbours, clients and colleagues with us: using our many voices, bodies, stories, drama and art to communicate why this climate emergency binds us together in collective and immediate action.
| Thank you for joining us! Let’s reverse greenhouse gas emissions together and leave no one behind! Dan Hendry, Mary Jane Philp, Jim Brown & Joan Lee, KFPL, Earth Hub and Sustainable Kingston | |
| Register today! |
8. Update from No Clearcuts in Kingston!
Received April 28
1) At our virtual “What is Your Vision for North King’s Town?” meeting April 20, we showed a map that. identified 6 largely unwooded properties along Montreal and Division Streets where less destructive “intensification” can and should occur.
No need for towers or clearcuts! We just need developer co-operation and political will.
One city-owned property that is prime development potential is sitting empty. We emailed Tim Park, Head of Planning, to ask why. He said he would get back to us.
2). A recent report warned that Kingston is one of 15 metropolitan areas most at risk for extreme heat. The report recommended an increased tree canopy to cool temperatures.
3). Meanwhile, the clearcuts continue. We’ve identified 15 completed and proposed ones!
A photo sent in by Mark Sibley, shows what remains of the 2200-plus trees on Clogg’s Rd.
A second photo by John Armstrong is on Resource Rd.
No Clearcuts wrote to Commissioner of Public Works Brad Joyce to find out the actual number of trees being cut on various sites, but no reply so far.
We remain extremely concerned about Jay Patry’s desire to clearcut over1800 trees at the Tannery-site!
4) The good news is that Councillors Lisa Osanic and Simon Chappelle will introduce a motion to Council to account for city trees on Tuesday, May 3:
9.Stolen Car Purchased from Thieves by Kingston Scrap Yard
Received from The Kingstonist, April 22, 2022 – Michelle Dorey-Forestell
A stolen car’s reappearance has shed light on what might be a much bigger issue, according to two Kingston men who found their prized vehicle stripped and waiting for demolition at a local scrap yard on Wednesday, Apr. 20, 2022. Andrew Good and his son, Logan, want people to be aware of their story.
Good visited his gym on the morning of Wednesday, Mar. 30, 2022, and returned to his home on Compton Street at around 11 a.m. to find that his son’s car was gone from the driveway. “I thought to myself, ‘where did my son go?’ I thought he was home, so I called him and asked, ‘Where did you go?’ He’s like, ‘I’m at home.’,” Good recalled. “‘Okay,’ I said, ‘Where’s the car?’”
The Toyota Corolla that Good had given his son for his sixteenth birthday had been stolen, right outside their home.
“We only got the car two years ago,” said Good. “It was the beginning of the pandemic. I’ve got a work truck, but it’s a work truck and I didn’t want him to learn to drive on it. He is in love with Toyotas and the old Toyotas especially… I happened across this car that is 20 years old, but it had only 90,000 kilometres, driven by a little old lady that only went to church on Sunday in it. It was in immaculate shape, and we were only the second owner. Oh, it was a real unicorn of a car that you’ll never find again.”
“I bought it, I taught my son to drive in it, and he’s been working to pay me back for two years to own the car for himself because it’s his first car,” said Good. He noted that the theft was upsetting to both of them, even beyond the financial loss, because of the sentimental value of the car for Logan.
The Goods filed a police report and resigned themselves to the likelihood that they had seen the last of the Toyota. “We figured it’s probably gone and we’ll never see it again,” said Good.
That all changed, however, when the Goods visited European Auto Parts/Mulrooney Metals on McAdoo’s Lane on Wednesday, Apr. 20, 2022.
“As we were unloading, we saw a couple of older wrecked vehicles,” said Good. “We’re sort of car guys, and we decided to take the long way out [of the scrap yard] so that we could take a look at these old junkers.”
That’s when, in what Andrew says was a “surreal moment,” they saw their stolen car, completely stripped down among the hulking wrecks.
“We were both just filled with rage because it’s our car, and yet this company has it,” Good expressed. He went into the business’s office and admits he had some strong words for the staff there. “I mean, what I basically said was, ‘Since when do you guys accept stolen vehicles?’ And he huffed and puffed and said, ‘Well, we don’t ever get stolen vehicles. We’re better than that.’”The Good’s car as they claim it was when they was found at Mulrooney Metals’ scrap yard. Submitted photos.
Good demanded to see the vehicle’s paperwork. When the employee retrieved the paperwork for the vehicle and showed the Goods the ownership papers, the Goods’ suspicions were vindicated. “I said, ‘Guess whose flipping name is on that ownership?’”
“The guy suddenly shifted everything about his attitude then,” said Good, who then asked who had dropped off the car. “[The staff member said], ‘Well, it was two really sketchy people, and there was a girl, and she had a mask on, and she signed for it.’”
Good added that he asked the staff member if they had checked the signature on the ownership for a match, and didn’t get a satisfactory response. “I asked, ‘Since when do you guys accept cars with the locks punched out? Where’s the key to the car?’ All the things that you just think should be [done when someone drops off a car to wreck].”
The staff member, Good asserted, had no answers. “He just said, ‘But, but, but, they had the ownership; it’s not my fault.’”
What bothers Good more than just the loss of the car, he said, is that he feels there is, “a bigger issue here. They (Mulrooney Metals) don’t care if it’s stolen. This is one step above racketeering.”
“A news story just broke on Twitter,” said Good, referring to a Kingston Police report published on Thursday, Apr. 21, 2022, “where the police are looking for these thieves who have been stealing catalytic converters. [Mulrooney Metals] advertise, they post publicly: ‘Bring us your catalytic converters and sell them here! And on top of that, give us a call and we’ll tell you which ones are the most valuable.’ I mean, this is one step above putting these thieves on your payroll.”
Catalytic converter thefts have been an ongoing and growing issues across eastern Ontario, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).
The Goods contacted Kingston Police to inform them of their discovery. “A constable showed up, got our story, and he was under the impression that we found our car and I just wanted to drive it away,” Good said. “But they’d already stripped it bare.”
Good had little sympathy for any loss or inconvenience that this incident may have caused for Mulrooney Metals. “Even when they’re caught red-handed, [Mulrooney Metals] thinks, ‘oh, we’re the victim of a crime here’… The difference is [scrap metal and parts-salvage businesses] are profiting from it… This is not just a Kingston problem. This is an industry problem.”
“[This industry] has done this for years and years,” Good alleged, pointing to the number of comments on a Reddit post his son had made about the incident. “Look at all the comments on Reddit. How many people are chiming in, ‘Same thing happened to me.’? It’s an industry that has been left unchecked and they’re profiting off crime – to profit from it is to endorse it.”
A representative for Mulrooney Trucking Ltd., the parent company that owns European Auto Parts & Mulrooney Metals provided the following statement:
“Out of respect for the ongoing police investigation that we are participating in to find the individual or individuals who sold the vehicle we are not in a position to comment at this time.”
For their part, Kingston Police said they could not provide comment, due to the fact this is an ongoing investigation, however, the Criminal Investigation Unit is currently investigating, and a report should be forthcoming. With regard to whether or not European Auto Parts and Mulrooney Metals have been investigated in the past, Kingston Police said that, unless a person or a business has been charged as part of an investigation, police do not name those involved.
Police also said that anyone who may have information regarding the purchase of stolen vehicles by any local business, or have stories similar to the Goods’, should contact Kingston Police at 613-549-4660.
Tips can also be made anonymously by calling the Kingston Police general number (613-549-4660 ext. 0) and requesting to remain anonymous.
This is a developing story with more to come.
10. Kingston Health Advisors Petition for Decriminalization of Personal Drug Use
Received from the Kingstonist, Apr 25, 2022
The KFL&A Community Drug Strategy Advisory Committee is calling for the decriminalization of people who use drugs. In 2021, the advisory committee endorsed a Statement of Support for decriminalization and is now advancing their advocacy efforts by submitting an online petition to the federal government, according to a release from KFL&A Public Health.
House of Commons. Photo by Wangkun Jia via Canadian Encyclopedia.
The petition calls upon the Government of Canada to:
decriminalize the use of drugs for personal use,
support the provinces in their efforts to respond to the drug poisoning crisis, and
create a dedicated stakeholder-advised Standing Committee to respond to Canada’s drug poisoning crisis that supports harm reduction, prevention, and treatment options for people who use substances.
“Decriminalization is an evidence-informed approach to reducing the harms associated with substance use. In the KFL&A region and across Canada we continue to see drug poisoning deaths rise with no sign of slowing down,” said Dr. Piotr Oglaza, Medical Officer of Health of KFL&A Public Health. “It is time to try a new approach, consistently applied throughout the country, that prioritizes the health and well being of people who use substances. Let’s work together as governments and communities to advance this new approach to save lives.”
Communities in the KFL&A region continue to see a rise in drug-related deaths, Public Health stated. According to the release, there was a 27 per cent increase in opioid-related deaths from 2019 to 2020, and preliminary data indicates there were 31 opioid-related deaths in the first 9 months of 2021.
“This petition is important because any resulting legislative change will alleviate unnecessary stress on our courts, emergency services, health care systems, and will save lives. A dedicated stakeholder-advised Standing Committee is a key part of this petition since expert feedback will be critical as the drug poisoning crisis changes over time.” expressed Sophie Kiwala, KFL&A Community Drug Strategy member and former MPP for Frontenac and the Islands.
According to the release, in 2020, half of opioid-related deaths in the KFL&A region occurred among individuals 25 to 44 years of age. 73 per cent of these individuals were male.
“In Canada, individuals are dying every day from drug-related deaths. By endorsing this petition, we hope to gain awareness and recognition of the health crisis we are fighting,” stated Andrea Kellar, member of the KFL&A Community Drug Strategy and Moms Stop The Harm. “Supporting the decriminalization of substances, funds currently used in to incarcerate individuals may be reallocated for treatment to help individuals and their families.”
The petition is now live on the House of Commons website and will be posted for 120 days. Individuals can show their support for decriminalization by signing the online petition. 500 signatures are required to receive a response from the Government of Canada.
11. Kingston HomeShare Initiative
| Canada HomeShare is an intergenerational housing initiative, under the National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly (NICE), that matches older adults (55+) who have a spare bedroom, with students enrolled in post secondary education. Students pay $400-600 in monthly rent and contribute 5-7 hours/week of assistance around the home. Canada HomeShare reached out to PDCA to let us know they have had several St.Lawrence College and Queen’s University students apply to the program, who are looking for accommodation for September. They are in need of more home provider applicants, particularly those who live closer to the two campuses. To learn more please click the link – Canada HomeShare. |
FROM FAR AND WIDE
12.Great Lakes region marks half a century since adoption of Water Quality Agreement, Daily Kos, Friday, April 15, 2022. This week marked the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, a key piece of legislation that both the U.S. and Canada entered into to protect and restore what many believe is one of the best collections of fresh surface water on the planet. Prior to the agreement, pollution and contamination were a rampant problem, to the point that pesticides were threatening and killing wildlife and oil spills into nearby rivers were similarly destroying this valuable ecosystem.
13. Ballast regulations reduce introduction of invasive species into Great Lakes: study, Toronto Star, April 28, 2022. The Great Lakes have been invaded more than any other freshwater system in the world, with nearly 190 non-native species having established populations in the basin over the past two centuries. A recent study suggests that a binational regulation targeting ship ballast water has had a remarkable suppressive effect on the invasion rate.
14. Review of Water Level Concerns
Received from Blue Fish Canada, late April
Phase 2 Begins for Expedited Review of Lake Ontario’s Plan 2014 / IJC
Plan 2014 is a set of rules that regulate the rate of outflow from Lake Ontario into the St. Lawrence River through a dam on the upper St. Lawrence, with the goal of moderating extreme water levels while allowing more natural variation in those levels. The International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board can override Plan 2014’s set rules and adjust the outflow when water levels reach extremes. The Expedited Review of Plan 2014, the outflow management plan for Lake Ontario, has moved to a second and more expansive phase. The focus is now on the workings of the plan and possible changes
15. Picton Terminals: Moving goods on water in family-owned company’s blood, Chamber of Marine Commerce, April 22, 2022. An Ontario company is delivering on its wish to see the marine transportation industry better utilized. H.R. Doornekamp Construction Ltd., a family-owned business headquartered in Odessa, near Kingston, has reinvigorated Picton Terminals since it purchased the deep-water facility in 2014. And it has joined the ranks of marine transportation players with the launch of Doornekamp Lines to provide all-water services in Eastern Canada and into the Great Lakes. Ben Doornekamp, owner of Doornekamp Construction, is quoted.
16. Great Lakes Connection Newsletter Link
https://ijc.org/en/newsletter/great-lakes-connection?utm_source=IJC+Newsletters&utm_campaign=8c978bf76a-GLC-English-April-2022&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e942718880-8c978bf76a-1224032844&mc_cid=8c978bf76a&mc_eid=1a08fb10e0
17. Support for Turtle Habitat Shoreline Protection vs. Dredging
Thanks to Barb Schlafer for this
https://www.sciencealert.com/major-assessment-of-world-s-reptiles-reveals-one-in-five-face-extinction?utm_source=ScienceAlert+-+Daily+Email+Updates&utm_campaign=7674ba6bdb-MAILCHIMP_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fe5632fb09-7674ba6bdb-365864929
FUN STUFF
18. 100+ Medicinal Plants and their Uses
https://practicalselfreliance.com/medicinal-plants
19. Morel Mushroom Recipes
https://practicalselfreliance.com/morel-mushroom-recipes/
20. Kingston Councillor Jeff McLaren on Political Blind Date
He is with Sol Mamakwa,NDP MPP from Kingfisher Lake First Nation, discussing Sir John A.
https://www.tvo.org/video/documentaries/the-real-history-of-canada
21. Pump House Museum’s 400 Years of Transportation Exhibit
Recommended! Contains beautiful Algonquin Canoe.
https://www.kingstonpumphouse.ca/whats-on/exhibitions/on-the-move-400-years-of-transportation-in-kingston
So that’s it for now.
Happy Mother’s Day this Sunday.
Mary Farrar,
President
Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour