IPhone apps like Camera+ (http://taptaptap.com) extend public works social network reach. http://twitpic.com/253dm4
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Excellent meeting in Claringto…
Excellent meeting in Clarington today with operational staff. Very impressive and professional. Taxpayers are well served.
On The Road Again…
On The Road Again
A fresh start; A new focus and a new attitude….
After a few weeks of dealing with a compromised (i.e. ‘attacked’) blog I am very pleased to be ‘On the Road Again’.
Without going into detail – because I don’t understand it – there is no clear indication of the method of attack. Some hosting companies put the blame on outdated versions of the WordPress application however many compromised blogs were running the latest WordPress version.
Stolen FTP or blog admin passwords, a vulnerability in the WordPress blogging platform or a bug in a popular WordPress plug-in are valid possibilities. So as my technical guru – aka my son – has advised….make up a complicated password; change it often; don’t install too many plugins and finally…..get reliable backup. Since he salvaged my site and all of my hard work I’m going to heed his advice.
What about this new focus and attitude? Well, an associate of mine gave me some sage advice during my blog ‘down time’. He suggested to:
• add more op-ed content (I am the editor however more opinionated – but balanced – content may be warranted in some posts; let the reader agree or disagree;
• maintain – despite the previous suggestion – a genuine, humanistic touch whenever possible; readers like good general information expressed with sincerity and understanding;
• go beyond the current focus (i.e. to communicate relevant Ontario municipal core public works related information) to a larger – say perhaps ‘global’ perspective. Many of my past posts contain ‘out of Province’ information; that’s a good thing because many organizations in the public works business have national and international interests and therefore stories.
These are all great suggestions coming from someone whose input I respect, however I’ll tread lightly for now – I’m not ready to strategically ‘go global’ quite yet – and make an effort to add more balanced opinion, maintain relevant content and finally have a larger perspective on some public works related issues. Sounds like a plan.
The Low Impact Development Stormwater Management Manual (Draft)
I’m always very impressed with the amount and quality of public works 
technical information available online. I think that a lot of published research flies under the radar and is not promoted outside a specific engineering branch or field of expertise. The Low Impact Development Stormwater Management Manual – developed by Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) - is a prime example. This 262 page comprehensive (draft) document would make an excellent reference manual in most if not all road maintenance offices. The main sections are:
- INTRODUCTION
- INTEGRATING STORMWATER MANAGEMENT INTO THE PLANNING PROCESS
- LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT PRACTICES DESIGN OF LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT STRUCTURAL PRACTICES
- Rainwater Harvesting 77
- Green Roofs 98
- Roof Downspout Disconnection
- Soakaways, Infiltration Trenches and Chambers
- Bioretention
- Vegetated Filter Strips
- Permeable Pavement
- Enhanced Grass Swales
- Dry Swales
- Perforated Pipe Systems
- MONITORING
City of Ottawa staff, citizens, contractors should review this manual
The quality of the water in the Ottawa River has been a growing concern to the people in Ottawa for a number of years. The main focus has been on bacterial contamination that follows rainfall events. Recent (July 2009) flooding in the Glen Cairn area has very angry residents calling for immediate action and financial assistance. The frequency and severity of these events has caused senior Provincial politicians to get involved.
In July of 2009, Gord Miller, Environmental Commissioner of Ontario was asked by Jim Watson, MPP Ottawa West-Nepean, to review the situation and advise as to what actions need to be taken to address this problem.
As he stated in his report “The second tough decision relates to storm water management. The problem will not be solved unless the city is retrofitted with SWM technologies and techniques. This requires the people of Ottawa to embrace a vision of a city where the rainwater runoff flows clean into its watercourses, and to commit to a long-term continuous effort to make it happen in thousands of very local situations.
RoadMap: Gord Miller’s report (A Review of the Response of Ottawa to Water Quality Issues in the Ottawa River) pdf.
CentreLine: This document – the Low Impact Development Stormwater Management Manual is a tool to help developers, consultants, municipalities and landowners understand and implement sustainable stormwater planning and practices.
Remembrance Day 2009 – Ottawa
The National War Memorial was unveiled in 1939 by King George VI.
I was proud to attend the National Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa today. Perfect weather and a huge respectful crowd. Lots of children which is always a good sign that future generations will not forget the past and present sacrifices of the brave men and women in the Canadian Forces.
CentreLine: “Lest we forget”
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is an international association of local governments as well as national and regional local government organizations that have made a commitment to sustainable development.
Over 1073 cities, towns (including most recently Halton Hills), counties, and their associations worldwide comprise ICLEI’s growing membership. ICLEI works with these and hundreds of other local governments through international performance-based, results-oriented campaigns and programs.
ICLEI provides technical consulting, training, and information services to build capacity, share knowledge, and support local government in the implementation of sustainable development at the local level. Our basic premise is that locally designed initiatives can provide an effective and cost-efficient way to achieve local, national, and global sustainability objectives.