The Town of East Gwillimbury (EG) is committed to preserving our natural environment and promoting sustainability in our corporate practices and across the community.

See how EG is making the environment a priority and implementing Thinking Green ideas throughout the community. EG is consistently addressing environmental considerations throughout its operations.
Some examples are:

  • On-going efforts to increase waste diversion from landfill
  • On-going Water Conservation initiatives in collaboration with the Region of York
  • Development Standards addressing matters such as energy efficiency, green space and pedestrian accessibility
  • Development and on-going improvement of the Town's Thinking Green and Sustainable Development strategies
  • Mosquito Control Program
  • Local Farmers Market
  • Annual Town-Wide Litter Clean-Up Event
  • Annual Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment Collection Event
  • Energy Retrofit Program

Invasive Plant Species

If you have invasive plants, we have tips to help remove them once and for all from your garden.

Focus on removing satellite populations or limiting plants before they start to dominate large areas.

Great care must be taken when disposing of invasive plants because some species can regenerate and/or colonize new areas from a single piece of rhizome, root stock, seed, or above ground vegetation.

Disposal of all invasive species should be done by:

  • Placing all plant material in heavy duty, construction grade black garbage bags. Seal the bags tightly, and cover any holes in the bag (e.g. with tape). When bagging root material, minimize the amount of soil being disposed of.
  • Garbage bags with plant material may be left in direct sunlight for a week or longer, to help kill plant material.
  • Care should be taken to not rip or otherwise put holes in the garbage bags so that the plant material remains contained.
  • Garbage bags with invasive species should be disposed through the local collection general garbage system.
  • Please note that invasive species can easily spread, they should not be composted.

Learn more about invasive species on the Ontario Parks website or the Ontario Invasive Plants website.

Please note that some plants (e.g. hogweed) need special treatment to avoid harm. If you are unsure of how to manage them, please visit the Species list at the Ontario Invasive Plant Council for detailed information.

Climate Emergency Declaration

On Tuesday, April 18, 2023, Council declared a Climate Emergency. This declaration formalizes the Town’s concerns, and more importantly, the actions that Council and staff will take to address climate change. The Town issued a media release to announce the declaration. 

The actions will build on the Town's current environmental policies and initiatives. The next steps will be:

  • Development of an Environmental Strategy
  • Creation of a Climate Action Plan
  • Update the Town’s Energy Plan,
  • Update the Town’s Thinking Green Development Standards

The full presentation is below: