Mississauga
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Mississauga
frastructure was eroding as a result of its inabil-
ity to cope with the flash floods and storms that
seem to be growing more and more common.
In response, they implemented a new storm-
water levee surcharge in order to invest more
money in their stormwater system to keep it
in good working order and to avoid costly re-
pairs in the future. On the average home, the
charge is minimal, but will help minimize po-
tential risks to residents, property owners, and
the environment.
That stormwater charge program recently
received the Canadian Association of Mu-
nicipal Administrators (CAMA) Environment
Award.
“This national recognition from the Cana-
dian Association of Municipal Administrators is
very encouraging,” said Mayor Bonnie Crom-
bie in a press release at the time. “Stormwa-
ter management is an important priority for
the City of Mississauga. There are increas-
ing pressures on our aging infrastructure and
more stormwater is entering our system than
ever before.”
“Safe, reliable stormwater infrastructure is
crucial to city-building. The stormwater charge
remains an important, forward looking and
responsible decision made by Council. It is
helping us protect our environment and build
a stronger and more reliable future for Missis-
sauga.”
On the topic of sustainability, Mississauga
also has a Living Green Master Plan (LGMP),
which is available for download at http://www.
mississauga.ca/portal/residents/living-green-master-plan. That plan provides a framework
for the city, in collaboration with the community,
businesses, and other levels of government,
to meet a number of environmental goals and
raise the minimum level of environmental per-
formance in Mississauga.
The city is also planting a million trees –
literally. They launched a program called One
Million Trees Mississauga in order to help con-
serve and enhance the city’s open spaces and
forested areas. Trees are planted by city staff,
partners, and volunteers on public and private
property. The count has already surpassed
200,000 and is growing all the time.
In recent years, the city also embarked on
the LED Street Lighting Conversion Project,
which involves the conversion of approximate-
ly 50,000 street lights to LED light bulbs. The
new LED street lights will significantly reduce
maintenance costs and are expected to result
in a 55 per cent reduction in future energy con-
sumption for the City. LED street lights will also
increase safety, visibility and reduce light pol-
lution in the sky.
Initiatives like that also go towards mak-
ing the city a more appealing place to live and
work, which Mayor Crombie says is her con-
stant overriding mission.
“My goal is to create a more liveable, walk-
able city with transit that integrates seamlessly
across our entire region,” she says.
Creating a more liveable city means con-
tinuing to add vitality to the city’s downtown.
It also means creating a new state-of-the-art
community at the site of the former Lakeview
Generating Station, developing an “innovation
corridor” within that community, and creating
“inspiring, vibrant places” along the Mississau-
ga waterfront – all of which are projects cur-
rently in development.
To learn more about the City of Missis-
sauga and its many opportunities for busi-
ness and development, visit http://winthe-
humanrace.ca/