From traffic to bad air, low-income groups face the worst of climate change in Toronto: experts

Breathing hasn't been easy in Toronto this June, as multiple air quality warnings have highlighted, but climate-related health risks can be especially acute for under-served communities, experts say.

Research shows communities that house lower-income immigrant populations and that are made up of older, poorly maintained buildings face greater exposure to health risks like polluted air and extreme heat, climate experts told CBC Toronto.

But with new municipal leadership being ushered in next week, the city has an opportunity to tackle local climate concerns that affect vulnerable groups and make better policy choices to protect those at higher risk. That's according to community advocate Michelle Dagnino, the executive director of the Jane and Finch Centre, a community organization in the neighbourhood located in the northwest end of Toronto.

"Lower-income folks are much more highly exposed to the impacts of climate change," said Dagnino.

Climate change has not been widely emphasized in the mayoral campaign from top candidates, according to CBC Toronto reporting. Candidates have proposed initiatives from electric buses to reducing the waste from high-rise buildings. But the plans say little about protecting groups that are most vulnerable.

Neighbourhoods in the northwest end of Toronto and parts of Scarborough tucked along major highways that carry long-haul trucks dealt with worse air quality than other regions, according to a 2022 University of Toronto study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.

And older apartment buildings in those areas don't always keep pollution out — whether it's from traffic or wildfires, according to another 2022 U of T study on air quality study published in the journal, Sustainable Cities and Society. 

Dagnino said basic tools to protect people aren't available to everyone, especially in lower income communities. Many of the residents her centre serves work in factories without air conditioning, let alone an air filter. And due to the high cost of housing, many of those residents live in cramped quarters with others in small apartments with poor indoor air, she said. 

"Many of these buildings, a lot of Toronto Community Housing buildings in particular, have not been maintained. They have bad circulation [and] issues with mould," she said. 

And there's less green space available in those communities too. For instance, Jane and Finch has green spaces but they aren't developed for public use and lack benches or walkways, said Dagnino.

Lack of tree canopy, increased pollution 

There are cheaper housing options near highways due to factors like pollution, but it's hard to determine which came first— the highways or the housing, said Jeffrey Brook, an associated professor at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

Brook specializes in urban air quality and created a project with colleagues called HealthyDesign.City that maps the air quality of dozens of cities in Canada and compares demographic data including visible minority population with factors like tree canopy cover. 

He said climate-related risks facing under-served neighbourhoods are exacerbated by the fact that communities made up of newcomers and lower-income groups may not speak English and can lack the agency to fight decisions that could hurt them.

Well-off communities "know the system, they have more power in general," he said. 

Jad Zalzal, a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto specializing in urban air quality, co-authored a study last year that found disparities in exposure to traffic emissions, despite a significant decrease in pollution between 2006-2020 with stricter emissions policies. Poor air quality is connected to premature deaths, he said.

Sarah Buchanan, the campaigns director with the non-profit advocacy organization Toronto Environmental Alliance, said  the city has a responsibility to address inequity through actions like mandating retrofitting TCHC buildings. 

The chronic long-term impacts of living next to a major road need to be examined just as much as concerns about a poor air quality day, she said. "That, over time, can cause a lot more damage to people. The city can make decisions that can minimize the harmful impacts," she said. 

In response to questions on how Toronto plans to help vulnerable communities, the city said it is supporting building operators to revitalize older towers, along with implementing a high-rise improvement program for builders and a program that helps owners and managers increase the environmental efficiency of buildings. 

It has also implemented a program to increase green space in communities that aims to enhance air quality. City bylaws also mandate that landlords provide adequate heating and cooling. When it comes to traffic, the city passed an action plan in late 2020 to address congestion. 

Social housing building retrofits crucial: advocates

There are changes taking place to improve social housing buildings, including energy-efficient retrofits that not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions but improve indoor air quality for residents, protect them from any poor air outside and increase cooling, according to Toronto Community Housing. 

Last year, Toronto Community Housing partnered with The Atmospheric Fund (TAF), a regional climate agency, to retrofit seven community housing buildings, with five other projects in the works. 

Keith Burrows, the director of low carbon buildings with TAF told CBC Toronto that the agency has been doing retrofits for over a decade, with most projects in social housing. 

"It certainly seems that smoke from wildfires is going to be the new norm for us. A retrofit is an opportunity to prepare the building for the future," he said. It also reduces energy bills for the residents, he said. 

In a statement to CBC Toronto, Toronto Community Housing said excessive heat is one of the largest issues tenants are facing in the summer. Currently, half of tenants have air conditioning. And diminished air quality due to forest fires is a "peripheral impact" of not having central cooling, said Boyd Dyer, the director of smart buildings and energy management at TCHC.

He said "almost all" buildings have received "some sort" of energy efficient retrofit, but to varying degrees. They range from LED light bulbs to full retrofits like the ones described by Burrows.

The housing agency plans to continue retrofits over the next five years with a goal of achieving a 25 per cent reduction in energy consumption. But it has faced criticism for buildings not being maintained, and recently for failing to address tenants' concerns.

Buchanan said these full retrofits of older buildings are incredibly important and are becoming more urgent. 

"Particularly for the city that owns these properties, let's think long term…let's do the work now and make them more sustainable," she said. 

"I really hope we'll see whoever is elected make good on these promises to fix people's housing situations," she said.