Industrial pollution saddled Hamilton with the largest per capita greenhouse gas emissions by far in the Greater Toronto Area in recent years, a new study shows.

The inventory by The Atmospheric Fund (TAF) nonprofit shows Hamilton had the highest per capita emissions in 2017 — about 19 tonnes per person — compared to a regional Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA) average of 6.9 tonnes. The next highest municipality per capita was Peel at 7.5 tonnes.

Emissions from industry are largely responsible for the stark per capita difference.

But climate activists say the results highlight a critical need for faster action by everyone — businesses, governments and individual citizens — to reduce emissions linked to global warming.

"It's not really a surprise that we have a giant greenhouse gas elephant in the room when it comes to industry," said Environment Hamilton's Lynda Lukasik, pointing to a history of steel manufacturing.

"But I think there is a risk that people look at that, shrug their shoulders and say, 'well, what can I do?' The answer is, there is a lot we can do — and a lot we need to do."

The carbon emissions inventory compared trackable greenhouse gas emissions for cities across the GTHA from buildings, transportation, industry, waste and agriculture between 2015 and 2017.

That geographic area, which also includes Durham, Halton, Peel, Toronto and York, accounted for nearly 50 megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in 2017, or more than 40 per cent of Ontario's total.

Over three years, the study found a 3.3 per cent drop for the entire region, with a slight increase in Hamilton.

But it would take a seven per cent emissions cut every year to hit "carbon neutrality" by 2050 — the goal climate scientists say cities everywhere need to meet to have a shot at managing global temperature spikes.

"The big message is we are not moving nearly quickly enough to meet our climate commitments," said Bryan Purcell, a policy vice-president at The Atmospheric Fund nonprofit that compiled the study.

The inventory showed buildings and the transportation sector are the major emission sources in virtually all studied cities — except Hamilton, where nearly 60 per cent of emissions were chalked up to industry.

(That finding lines up with an audit conducted by the Bay Area Climate Change Office, which found steelmaking was far and away the biggest local contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in 2016.)

"It's a unique challenge but also a unique opportunity," said Purcell. "It's certainly difficult to achieve major progress without working on those (industrial) emissions. But improvements to a handful of those facilities can result in really big gains."

Purcell highlighted the importance of government investment at all levels to help the "decarbonization" of legacy industries. For example, the Liberal government committed $50 million in 2018 to a "modernization" of operations at ArcelorMittal Dofasco, which routinely tops carbon emissions for facilities in Ontario.

He also pointed to a Hamilton Chamber of Commerce project, partly funded by TAF, that is mapping industrial waste heat sources and looking at reuse opportunities.

Lukasik argued all governments need to "get serious" about both investment and "regulatory encouragement" — which is why she is worried about the provincial Tories' decision to axe the cap-and-trade system for Ontario last year.

But even without industrial pollution, Hamilton would have narrowly topped the per-person emissions list.

That's why it remains important for local government and individual citizens to focus on tackling other climate challenges, said Lukasik, like poorly insulated homes and carbon dioxide-belching transportation — a sector that saw emissions grow over the study period in Hamilton.

Environment Hamilton is rallying residents to push for more and better bus or LRT service, with the aim of convincing more drivers to adopt mass transit.

Hamilton's council declared a climate emergency earlier this year and recently committed to new corporate climate mitigation goals that include priorities like retrofitting buildings, buying electric vehicles and looking at development through a climate lens.

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To see the full study, visit taf.ca.

• • •

Tonnes of emissions per-person in 2017 Hamilton: 19.1* (w/o industry, 7.98)

Peel: 7.5

Halton: 6.8

Durham: 6.3

York: 5.6

Toronto: 5

• • •

What can you do to cut emissions? Take transit: vehicle emissions accounted for 14 per cent of Hamilton emissions in 2017

Watch your diet: meat — particularly beef — has a high-carbon impact

Insulate: retrofitting your energy-inefficient home saves you cash and cuts emissions

Vote for climate: ensure your elected representatives take global warming seriously

mvandongen@thespec.com

905-526-3241 | @Mattatthespec

Tonnes of emissions per-person in 2017

Hamilton: 19.1* (w/o industry, 7.98)

Peel: 7.5

Halton: 6.8

Durham: 6.3

York: 5.6

Toronto: 5

What can you do to cut emissions?

Take transit: vehicle emissions accounted for 14 per cent of Hamilton emissions in 2017

Watch your diet: meat — particularly beef — has a high-carbon impact

Insulate: retrofitting your energy-inefficient home saves you cash and cuts emissions

Vote for climate: ensure your elected representatives take global warming seriously



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