News:

Commuter Challenge:

1. Commuter Challenge Results
2. Commuter Challenge Prize Information
3. Commuter Challenge Questionnaire

With the conclusion of Commuter Challenge 2004, the City of Hamilton has placed 6th out of 24 Municipalities with populations between 100,000 and 500,000 nationally.  Our results are an improvement from last year. Through the efforts of everyone involved the city employees managed to prevent a substantial amount of emissions from entering our atmosphere! Below is a list of the exact emissions saved throughout the week.

149.91 (g) of Particulate Matter 2.5

Airborne particulate matter, known as PM, is one of the major components of smog. PM includes microscopic particles in the air that are divided into two size ranges: PM2.5 and PM10. PM2.5 refers to "fine" particles less than 2.5 micrometers in size about 1/20th the width of a human hair.

28, 349.18 (g) of Nitrogen Oxides

Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) include nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). These pollutants come primarily from the burning of fossil fuels within our cars, trucks and industrial plants, to mention a few and from high temperature processes.

5,839.21 (kg) of Carbon Dioxide Equivalent

CO2e, or "carbon dioxide equivalent," is a common unit used to compare and add up the separate contributions of different greenhouse gases (GHG) to climate change. It is used because different GHGs have different abilities to trap heat. For example, one tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2) and one tonne of methane (CH4) contribute different amounts to climate change, or are said to have different "global warming potentials".

2. Commuter Challenge Prizes

The prizes will be drawn Thursday June 17th 2004 and winners will be informed on Friday. I am still accepting nominations for the most creative commuter, the unsung hero's award, and the individuals who cycled and walked the greatest distances. 

Finally, in order to continually improve the Commuter Challenge Program I request that everyone involved complete a short questionnaire. Please print out the questionnaire and either fax, email, or interoffice mail it to me as soon as possible.  Your feedback is greatly appreciated.  The questionnaire is completely anonymous and you will not be contacted concerning the comments you have made. 

If you have any questions comments or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Cameron Hopgood

Assistant Environmental Planner & Commuter Challenge CoordinatorPlanning and Development Department
71 Main Street West
Hamilton , Ontario

Tel: 905-546-2424 x. 1286
Fax: 905-643-7250
E-mail: chopgood@hamilton.ca