Mark Winfield Archives - Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change

Ontario's deepening hydro mess

patilpos — Wed, 19 Oct 2022 17:51:00 +0000

by Mark Winfield Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives went into the 2018 Ontario election campaign promising, among other things, to fix the province’s ‘hydro mess.’   In practice fixing the hydro 'mess' turned out to be a lot more complicated than it sounded. In the end, the first Ford government did little other than double down on […]

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Market ‘correction’ provides opportunity for GTA housing policy reset

patilpos — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 22:25:00 +0000

The housing “crisis” has created an opportunity of a “reset” to stabilize the Greater Toronto Area’s housing market and development pathway. by Mark Winfield A defining feature of discussions around housing in the Greater Toronto Area over the past few years has been the notion of an affordability ‘crisis,’ as housing prices rose dramatically. Spillover […]

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How the war in Ukraine will shape Canada’s energy policy — and climate change

paultran — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 19:45:04 +0000

by Mark Winfield Major wars are often watershed moments in history. Their outcomes define governance structures, politics and policy directions for decades, even centuries, to come. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine already seems certain to have these kinds of effects at the national, regional and global scales. The invasion has quickly come to dominate political and […]

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What is clean electricity?

paultran — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 22:05:36 +0000

Ontario’s nuclear plan raises questions about what is “clean” energy and the need for open, evidence-based decision-making around net-zero pathways. by Mark Winfield, Colleen Kaiser In December, Ontario Power Generation (OPG) announced it will work with GE Hitachi to develop a new 300MW nuclear power reactor at the provincially owned utility’s Darlington site. The news was presented as […]

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Ontario on track to see major increases in greenhouse gas emissions

paultran — Fri, 07 Jan 2022 16:43:44 +0000

Add pollution and costs from electricity generation to that list too By Mark WinfieldColleen Kaiser The Ontario Independent Electricity System Operator’s (IESO) Annual Planning Outlook report released last week contains some very bad news for Ontarians in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air quality, and future electricity costs. The directions laid out in the report also present […]

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Families of Quebec seniors who died in long-term care split on idea of public inquiry

paultran — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 22:08:32 +0000

While some feel only a full public inquiry will get answers, others fear it would be a waste of time In interview with Prof Mark Winfield As opposition politicians at the National Assembly unite in calls for a full public inquiry into the deaths of seniors at long term-care homes during the first wave of […]

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Ontario’s return to the business of building roads to sprawl

paultran — Fri, 26 Nov 2021 21:22:32 +0000

By Prof. Mark Winfield Twenty-five years ago, Mike Harris’s “common sense revolution” heralded a of shredding the province’s planning rules, and proposals for a network of highway expansions in every direction outward across the Greater Toronto Area. The government’s plans prompted a backlash. Harris’ approach was widely seen as a strategy for sprawling urban development that threatened the […]

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How Ontario's cities can help address climate change and meet COP26 agreement goals

paultran — Wed, 24 Nov 2021 17:00:37 +0000

In the days since nearly 200 countries signed on to a deal at COP26 in Scotland, experts in Toronto say cities and municipalities have an important role to play in addressing climate change. Nick Westoll reports. Interview with Prof Mark Winfield. By Nick Westoll Posted Nov 20, 2021, 9:06PM EST. It’s been a week since an agreement was […]

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Canada's key role at COP26

paultran — Mon, 01 Nov 2021 13:55:32 +0000

Canada's key role at COP26 In interview with Prof Mark Winfield By Caryn Ceolin Posted Oct 31, 2021, 3:41PM EDT. Last Updated Oct 31, 2021, 5:06PM EDT. Summary World leaders are gathering in Glasgow for COP26 to confront what climate scientists warn is the disaster ahead. Experts want to see more ambitious national emissions reduction targets […]

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Election campaign featured big climate promises, but can the federal government deliver?

paultran — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 14:14:29 +0000

by Mark Winfield The outcome of the recent federal election — a Liberal minority dependent on the NDP or Bloc Québécois for support — has been widely seen as having a “Groundhog Day” aspect to it. It left the composition of Parliament very much as it was before, reinforcing questions about the necessity of the […]

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