Mississauga, Ontario is home to over 756,000 people. As this number continues to rise over the years, so will the urgency for us to correct the mistakes that would only get worst in the future. The four of us are here to discuss the current issues of Mississauga, why it’s unsustainable if we continue with our actions and what are some more eco-friendly alternatives that still meet the needs of the city. Hopefully, you take our future plans for the city into consideration in order to make Mississauga a more sustainable place to live. Hi, I’m Marwa, and I’m going to be specializing in Energy and water management.
Current Issues: Energy
The current issue that Mississauga is facing today is the lack of energy production. We are completely reliant on metropolitans such as Toronto to meet the commands of the city.
Why it's Unsustainable: Energy
Mississauga's population is set to increase by 50,000 residents in the next 14 years or less; as well as the use of electrical cars and other more advanced technology is predicted to increase by almost 15%. Although we have not had any complications yet, the fear that I have is the electrical power plants would not be able the sustain our needs in the future as well as Toronto's. By the year 2031 Mississauga would commonly experience power outages due larger than normal amounts of current passing through the wires, and in some cases, this may cause fires. As a result, people would move out of the city and go elsewhere, not only because of lack of electricity but also the cost of electricity available is rather expensive. This would also decrease the popularity and the visual appeal of suburb areas leading to a drop in the economy.
One of the major problems we have today is regulating carbon emissions in order to prevent further climate change. So, my plan for Mississauga is to only utilize renewable energy sources such as Wind, Solar, Geothermal and Hydroelectric power plants throughout Mississauga. Not only will it be more efficient but also the cost of energy would decrease as it's being produced locally, but in order to use these power plants to its full extent; where they're placed plays important factors.
Wind power plants are one of the fastest and cheapest sources of energy available that requires minimal maintenance and space. Wind turbines would be a great investment to have in Mississauga, as the average wind speed is 26 Km/H year round. I plan on constructing these turbines on grasslands such as the Credit Valley area. That way there would be enough space for a wind farm and also not cause any land conflict as it is a remote area.
.Currently, more solar energy hits the earth every day than everyone on earth is able to use in the next 27 years. I plan on encouraging households and businesses to invest in Solar panels by decreasing the price to purchase them, and increasing the price of electricity that come from unrenewable power plants. Solar panels are easy to install, doesn't require excess space for placement, and would also increase market value for homeowners as well as profits for business owners.
.Although geothermal energy is slightly more expensive, it requires little to no maintenance. Unlike other forms of renewable energy, the temperature of the earth stays consistent. Meaning that the time of year or even the temperature of the area that you are in will not play a role in how effective the geothermal power plants will be (this would play a significant role when there are inconsistencies in wind and sun energy)These power plants would also be placed in unoccupied, low elevation land, in similar settings as to where we plan on placing wind turbines.
Lastly, Canada has the largest water supply in the world. So, unlike other countries we have the opportunity to expand on our hydroelectric power use. Some concerns people may have about the production of hydroelectricity is the fact that hydro turbines have the potential to kill aquatic organisms. This problem can easily be resolved by placing steel fencing (that way it doesn't rust) around the hydro turbines; that way the organisms don't have access to the turbine and still allows water the pass through. The planned placement of these power plants would be in Lake Sore or the Mississauga River.
Although this is a plan for Mississauga, it is also a way to encourage other cities to become more eco-friendly and to rely less on fossil fuel burning facilities, by sharing our excess energy to other cities. That way it would reduce our carbon emissions as a country; but of course, these changes won't happen overnight. The process of constructing enough power plants to provide energy for the whole city would take a number of years to construct, as well as loss of visual appeal.
Current Issues: Water
The issues that we have today with water is not necessarily how much we consume, it's how much water we/industries are wasting. A majority of industries burn fossil fuels as there the main source of energy. So, when fossil fuels are burning they release mercury into the air, then if a rainstorm were to occur this toxin would travel to oceans, lakes, rivers etc. Once the mercury reaches the water it turned into a far more dangerous substance called methylmercury, which ends up on the ocean floor, getting absorbed by the plankton. Then a process called bioaccumulation occurs, which is the process of contaminates traveling through the predatory food chain eventually leading to us. In rare cases when you're exposed to too much mercury it can affect your hearing, vision, speech, and coordination. Another symptom people may experience are pins and needle sensations in your hands, feet and around your mouth region. Not only that, but our meat consumption has grown to almost double than what we used to eat 20 years ago using more than 50 gallons of water in order to slaughter larger animals.
Why it's Unsustainable: Water
If companies do not switch to greener energy sources, the amount of carbon needed would only increase as the population does so as well. Thus meaning that the mercury concentration of aquatic organisms today wouldn't come close to the mercury exposure that will occur in the near future. Neurological problems due to consumption of these creatures wouldn't be a rarity, as well as more server cases such as various types of cancer which would be costly for health Canada to treat, and even tumors in the fish. So, if the consumption of aquatic organisms causes an array of health problems, why would anyone want to buy them? This would cause a severe economic downfall as many fishery businesses would go bankrupted and many people would be at a loss of employment. In order to produce the meat we slaughter for our everyday use, it takes significant amounts of water, and as the population increases so will the demand for these animal products in the future. The problem that would no doubt occur is the fact that there won't be enough water (not only to produce the meat/ animal byprodicts but for drinking purposes as well) and meat to satisfy the demands that the city requires, and in order to get the inventor and water needed we would have to import the resources from other countries which would make it far more expensive than it is currently.
Coral does a great job of filtering out the heavy metals from the ocean, but the problem is that small amounts of the substance can easily kill them. This inspired Chinese scientists to develop a series of aluminum oxide nanoplates which effectively remove these toxins before they can be absorbed by the plankton and carried out through the food chain. I believe that this would be a great investment for Mississauga as it prevents us from the economic and health concerns in the future. That along with replacing the fossil fuel energy into green energy. As far as meat goes, a project called Beyond Meat is developing a way to make veggie options taste exactly like meat by using a machine called a Gas Chromatograph. A Gas Chromatograph gives us an exact measurement of the compounds that make up the texture, taste, and aroma of meat. This wouldn't require nearly as much water and would improve the overall health of the citizens. I believe that people don't use this as a substitute because it is not as available as regular meat is. So, I plan on investing in this project and make it more available in local supermarkets.
This is rather easy and avoidable issue that we can resolve as a community today by simply making changes in your diet that would not only benefit the environment but also benefit your health as well.
Bibliography: Energy & Water Management
How does Mercury Get Into Fish?// January 6, 2017//
The Future of Protein Will Not be Animal Meat// January 6, 2017//
What are issues with renewable energy// January 4, 2017// >https://youtu.be/7lEKFcBgu5A<
bill nye- How stuff works- Solar energy// January 4, 2017//
Energy I Natural Resource Canada// January 1, 2017//
Canada is a magnificent place to live, with amazing job opportunities and the chance for a bright future for everyone. Mississauga is a modern city, however our way of living isn’t sustainable and up to date. Every day I see cars, buses, vans, trucks going off to reach their destination. As harmless as this might seem it is having such a negative impact on the environment.
Current issues: Transportation
Some issues we face with transportation is that the weather isn’t predictable. An unknown rainstorm or blizzard might hit while you’re in your motor vehicle and may be stuck on the road for many hours which leads to consummation of your gas and more greenhouse gas emissions.
Biking is a sustainable way to get around the city but not many people use it. Biking is not only good for your health but, it’s environmentally friendly. It makes travelling easier and it requires less maintenance than a car does.
Greenhouse gas emissions are also a huge problem. Canada produces 1.58% of the greenhouse gases in the world. Greenhouse gas emissions is something our city can help lower and leave behind a good ecological footprint
I propose we make basic necessities closer to homes, and make biking more popular. We can create more lanes for bikes and schools should talk to children about either walking, skateboarding or biking to school.
For the weather, there is nothing we can really do except for checking the weather before we leave the house to avoid traffic jams and instead of driving if your destination is close why not walk?
An idea I propose is making trucks, buses and cars ran on energy. Perhaps using solar panels for cars. This may seem foolish but if we use the sun to power our cars with no gas involved we can lower the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. It will also be cheaper to maintain a vehicle ran on energy. You wouldn’t have to pay for gas every week or so and is environmentally friendly. Now you may be wondering how the sun can power a car. Well you’ve probably seen solar panels on calculators that don’t need batteries, likewise so the cars will only be ran on the suns energy. However, the weather is unpredictable so we have another option that we still are working on. Like greenhouse gases get stuck into the atmosphere why not use the same concept for solar panels on cars. If we can somehow get sun rays to stay in the car without it somehow overheating we may have a way to refrain from charging electric cars and using a more sustainable way to get around.
Another idea I have may seem crazy but if plan it out properly it may work. Every week, once a day every person whose destination, whether it be work, school or simply grocery shopping must walk or be allowed to take public transit. However, we know that we for people working overnight it may not be safe for them to walk so buses will be available over night every 15 minutes and police will be even more alert and placed randomly around the city. Perhaps we can start off slow just once a month. For students buses will be provided if it is raining, snowing. With this idea we wish to keep you safe while protecting our world. We have a team perfecting this idea and seeing if it is possible. Our goal is to make Mississauga more modern tackling one problem at a time.