Statement from Clarington Mayor Adrian Foster on Earth Day

Clarington, Ontario –  The Municipality is releasing the following statement on behalf of Clarington Mayor Adrian Foster.

“Today on Earth Day, we celebrate how fortunate we are to live in such a beautiful setting and come together to work towards better protecting the environment.

In recent years, Clarington has launched new energy conservation initiatives through the Climate Action Plan, banned single-use plastic straws in municipal facilities, and expanded our active transportation network of trails and bicycle lanes. To minimize our greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, Clarington has begun to change its vehicle fleet to low-carbon electric vehicles (EVs). To support residents who have also switched to EVs, the Municipality has installed public EV charging stations at downtown Bowmanville and Garnet B. Rickard Recreation Complex. This year, Council approved installing even more EV charging stations at five new locations.

This Earth Day, I want to thank all the Clarington residents who are ready to roll up their sleeves and pitch in. Volunteers come together each year to clean up litter and beautify Clarington's parks, green spaces, waterfront, and nature areas. This is the 10^th anniversary of Operation Clean Sweep at the Port of Newcastle, Bond Head, and Samuel Wilmot Nature Areas. At the Bowmanville Westside Marshes, the Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority (CLOCA) hosts an event with tree planting and litter pickup. Volunteers from the Bowmanville Rotary Club and Valleys 2000 have organized The Great Lakes Watershed Cleanup along our creeks. Thanks to Clarington’s Operations staff for supporting neighbourhood cleanups with garbage bags and gloves and arranging the disposal of the collected waste.

As we commemorate this Earth Day, I want to thank everyone for working to protect our natural resources. Please know that your actions, however small, directly impact the quality of Clarington’s air, land, and water.”