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Heart and Stroke Foundation Supports EAC's Green Mobility Strategy
Halifax, NS - Increasing physical activity, reducing air pollution, and minimizing land use in Nova Scotia are key reasons to support the Green Mobility Strategy says the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia.
The Ecology Action Centre report provides eight solid recommendations with accompanying action steps that - with provincial government investment - can significantly increase sustainable passenger transport throughout Nova Scotia. The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia supports the strategy because implementation of its recommendations will help create a more sustainable and healthy province.
"The best way our physical space - our built environment - is designed influences the range of options Nova Scotians have to be active", says Jane Farquharson, CEO, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia. "The recommendations presented by the Ecology Action Centre for sustainable and alternate forms of transportation provide significant health and environmental benefits."
A 2008 report released by the Heart and Stroke Foundation found short-term exposure to air pollution causes approximately 6,000 deaths in Canada every year, and research suggests that 69 percent of these deaths come in the form of heart disease and stroke.
"Given our joint focus on increasing physical activity planning, improving land-use planning and reducing air pollution, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia supports the Green Mobility Strategy and encourages the provincial government to adopt the recommendations contained with it", explains Farquharson.
In 2004 the Heart and Stroke Foundation commissioned a study to explore the costs of physical inactivity in HRM. The report showed that physical inactivity in HRM costs the provincial economy an additional $44.7 million each year in indirect productivity losses due to premature death and disability. The Heart and Stroke Foundation was also involved in the development of HRM's 25-Year Regional Plan and leads programs such as Heart&Stroke Walkabout which focus on building a walking culture in the province.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation (www.heartandstroke.ca), a volunteer-based health charity, leads in eliminating heart disease and stroke and reducing their impact through the advancement of research and its application, the promotion of healthy living, and advocacy.
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For more information:
Allen McAvoy, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia
423-7682 ext 321 / [email protected]
[email protected]
Green Mobility Strategy on EAC's website
July 25, 2008
Walking the talk
Editor,
The Green Mobility Strategy - released by the Ecology Action Centre on July 24 - is another important document that adds to the growing list of research pointing to the need for a greater investment in sustainable transportation in Nova Scotia.
How a community is designed - including access to walkways, trails, parks, and sidewalks - impacts the health of those living in it. What's more, with growing research demonstrating the link between air pollution and risk of heart disease and stroke, there is even more reason for everyone - including government - to act.
These are steps that citizens can take to be healthier in their daily lives, such as walking more and driving less. However municipal and provincial governments also need to invest in comprehensive strategies that provide accessible, convenient options to the private automobile. This includes a vital focus on integrated sustainability plans.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia supports strategies such as the one released by the Ecology Action Centre since they provide sustainable options for building healthy and viable communities. The Foundation also supports the Green Mobility Strategy as it integrates well with our own programs aimed at helping to increase physical activity in the province.
For example, supported by the Nova Scotia Department of Health Promotion and Protection and the Ecology Action Centre, Heart&Stroke Walkabout (www.walkaboutns.ca) is a comprehensive, province-wide strategy to help increase walking in the province. It provides support to walkers and also includes strategies to encourage communities to factor the health of its residents - a community's most important asset - into decisions regarding the design of its community.
While we can encourage people to be more active and healthy, having access to active transportation options will be one of the key factors to influence change. The environmental benefits of increased sustainable passenger transportation and decreased motor vehicle use are obvious; however, the health benefits that come from participating in forms of active transportation such as walking or biking are equally important.
Jane Farquharson
CEO, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia
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