An apartment within the Jane and Finch neighbourhood is pictured on Sept. 16, 2022. A lack of public green space and tree canopy in communities in Toronto's northwest can worsen air quality, 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. 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.
"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.