Environmental Justice Project Supported

The Hamilton Community Foundation has renewed funding for EH’s work in lower income Hamilton neighbourhoods.

North Hamilton has been the focus of this environmental justice project for the past three years of operation – helping residents improve the quality of life in their communities – both by reducing negative impacts and improving public services.

The project has now been expanded to low-income neighbourhoods across the city.
Achievements so far have included:

• convincing the city to establish a new north-south HSR route on Victoria and Wentworth that ends a situation where some families were more than one kilometre from a bus stop

• reducing waste in an elementary school from 96 bags to 4 per month, and engaging the students in a bird house construction, school grounds beautification and other environmental projects

• winning compensation for residents whose homes were damaged by demolition and construction activities connected to a new industrial facility

• developing the Passport to Hamilton transit promotion program that provides discounts at over 60 locations to families using the low-cost HSR day pass (see page 3)

• questioning outdated and inadequate Ministry of the Environment regulation of polluting steel industries, leading the Ministry to step up its monitoring and enforcement activities

• supporting community festivals and fundraising events to expand park facilities in low income areas

• distributing free energy saving kits to several thousand homes

• drawing wide media coverage of industrial soot and fallout that has been plaguing north Hamilton residents

• publishing a monthly column of environmental advice that is circulated to 4000 homes

• getting action to stop unacceptable industrial odours

• using the Environmental Bill of Rights to require emissions stack testing at a facility using toxic chemicals

• conducting a transit and energy use survey of over 3200 households

• helping to draw public attention to significant wildlife habitat adjacent to and near the harbour and assisting residents in protecting these areas

• obtaining a provincial review of a metal cutting operation that was producing significant emissions and convincing the company involved to move the operations indoors

• building good neighbour relationships between residents and industries operating near their homes

The ongoing work is supported by the HCF’s innovative Tackling Poverty Initiative that is committed to make Hamilton the best place to raise a child.