The 18th community event and 5th renewable energy series Eco Rendezvous – Biomass/Biofuel and wind energy was held on May 4, 2013 at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Toronto - Mississauga at 10am. Biochar Ontario partnered with EnvironFocus to organize the event. Biocar AGM followed immediately after Eco rendezvous. It was a good partnership. The event was well attended. The purpose of the event was to provide an informal forum to create awareness of biomass/biofuel and wind energy as available environmental solutions in a way that is understood by the public. It was also about linking existing small -medium size businesses to an interested audience (Residents or businesses). Thanks to all that participated.

Thanks to members that participated and attended the Eco Rendezvous – Solar III. It was an engaging learning experience. The added activities such as the sale of eco jewelry and farm shares were well received. My thanks go to the following individuals and organizations that took part in the event: Lia VanBaalen, Marketing Assistant, Fronius Canada Ltd Jim Jaeger, Partner, Dynamic Solar Tech David Biderman, Partner, Dynamic Solar Tech Julie Leach, Renewable Energy Co-Operatives : Solar Share Buchi Onakufe, Akachi Farms Sue Gitti , Jewels of Chakara

It was an excellent arena to exchange information on solar energy as a renewable energy source. Special thanks go to the Speakers and Solar Companies’ representatives that made the event a success and they include: Bernard Fleet Ph.D., D Sc., FRSC Adjunct Professor, School of Environmental Applied Science & Management, Ryerson University. Khosrow Shahali -Synapse Energy Inc Lisa Oelke, Senior Account Executive, hb Solar Canada Inc. Lia Van Baalen, Marketing Assistant, Fronius Canada Michael Reive – Regional Sales Manager, Fronius Canada. Ideas regarding the workshop series are welcome

The information session was a preview of Mike Nevin's presentation at the Guelph Organic Conference at Guelph University. The session focused on the 5 factors that lead to a successful small to mid-scale composting. The factors include: Feedstock and inputs, Bulking agents, Air/oxygen, Moisture and Time & labor available He spoke process adaptation to accommodate whatever inputs you have; common challenges and solutions; Carbon to Nitrogen ratios of commonly available materials and answer any questions you might have. A discussion forum was held after pre the presentation to get audience feedback. In addition to the information session, there was a tour of Foodshare's composting site - greenhouse and worm composting project. A bag of compost and a book : Wayne Robert's "Get a life" was given to the first 8 members that registered to attend.

The tour began with a visit to the electricity generation plant (Britannia landfill gas plant) and then the golf court. The Plant tour... The plant tour was led by the Plant Manager. The plant is located close to the golf course. Over 60 vertical gas extraction wells divert landfill gas from the golf course to the plant. The plant is as a result of a partnership between Region of Peel with Integrated Gas Recovery Services Limited (IGRS). The Plant is operated by IGRS. The facility contains gas processing equipment and three reciprocating engines with total generation capacity of approximately 5.5 megawatts of power. This represents enough green electricity to power 5,000 homes on a daily basis for the next 20 years. A total of 250,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases are destroyed annually, thereby reducing impacts on climate change; generating greenhouse gas emission reduction credits; improving local air quality; and turning a waste by product into a valuable resource. The Golf Course... The tour of the golf course was led by Rick Maj, a Region of Peel employee. The golf court was formally the Britannia Sanitary Landfill Site. It operates through a partnership between the Region of Peel, owner of the site and the City of Mississauga, operator of the golf course. The Britannia Landfill contains over 13 million cubic meters of waste deposited between 1980 and 2001. Various environmental control systems have been installed and monitoring programs established to manage the landfill and ensure the local environment is protected through the lifecycle of the landfill. Over eight kilometers of pipes were installed in the waste to capture leachate (liquids) and landfill gas. An average of 20,000 cubic meters of leachate is captured and treated annually onsite and at the Region’s Lakeview Sewage Treatment Plant. This was a tour packed with information, an excellent example of an environmental solution to an environmental problem. Thanks to all members that attended the event.

A tour of the Peel Integrated Waste Management Facility. The waste management facility tour was very informative and interesting. It began with video presentations by Nazreen Subhan. The tour was lead by Nazreen Subhan and Ryan Baird both Region of Peel employees. The facility is a combination of a waste transfer station and an organics processing center. At the facility, recyclables collected were separated into different streams that included paper, plastics, Styrofoam and metals. Members that came for the event were very interested in the various processes, which made it very enjoyable for everyone. Thanks to Jen for arranging carpooling for members from Toronto, to Jon for the Steel toe Boots and thanks to members that attended the event.

Exhibition Place :The renewable energy tour went very well. There were various green initiatives being done or have been put in place at Exhibition Place. The tour was lead by Noel Mationg - Energy Coordinator and Rachel Chow - Energy Management Facilitator at Exhibition Place. The photos tell the story.. Review from Exhibition Place to EnvironBuzzers: "The level of interest of the group was welcoming" A copy of the presentation can be found at this link:https://docs.google.c... Thanks to Mary for bringing the delectable cakes..

Pilot project. Farming our way out of poverty one home at a time

The pilot project was started in August 2015. This pictures were taken September 25, 2015

Showcasing Green Ideas, products and Services

The Inaugural event

Showcasing Green vendors to the community