*Please see below a news release issued by the City of Burlington.
Burlington, ON — Aug. 27, 2021 — Climate change is a global problem with local consequences and solutions. Earlier this year Burlington’s sustainability staff presented a climate projections report to City Council based on scientific data, concluding that we can expect local conditions to be warmer, wetter and wilder. To help respond to increasing risks and vulnerabilities, the City is developing Climate Resilient Burlington – A Plan for Adapting to Our Warmer, Wetter and Wilder Weather.
Recognizing the severity of a changing climate, City Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and a year later approved a Climate Action Plan with a target to become a net carbon zero community by 2050. The City of Burlington is taking action to achieve this goal in collaboration with local, regional and national stakeholders. We are reporting on our climate action through the Global Covenant of Mayors for Energy and Environment which is supported in Canada by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability and through the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a global disclosure system for businesses and governments to help manage environmental impacts.
“Climate change is not just about City Hall so the challenge is how can we support all members of the community to reduce their carbon footprint in their homes and how they get around the community. And just as important Climate Resilient Burlington will help us to address how to prepare for the impacts of our changing climate by managing and reducing risk particularly for those most vulnerable in our community.” — Lynn Robichaud, Manager of Environmental Sustainability, City of Burlington
Race to Zero
Recently, the City of Burlington also joined Race to Zero, in response to an invitation while reporting through the CDP program. Race to Zero is a United Nations (UN) backed global campaign rallying companies, cities, regions, financial and educational institutions – to take rigorous and immediate action to halve global emissions by 2030, demonstrating momentum at the upcoming UN global climate conference later this year in Glasgow.
All members are committed to the same overarching goal: reducing greenhouse gas emissions across all scopes swiftly and fairly in line with the Paris Agreement, with transparent action plans and robust near-term targets.
Climate Action in Burlington
The City of Burlington is working with the Centre for Climate Change Management at Mohawk College to develop a home energy retrofit program which will include developing a business plan for a delivery centre, assessing financing options for homeowners, and providing information sessions for homeowners. Funding to support this project was recently approved by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities through its Community Efficiency Initiative program. A homeowner survey will be launched this fall to support this work and an educational webinar is being scheduled for mid-October for homeowners to learn about measures they can take to improve energy efficiency and reduce their carbon footprint.
Other related climate actions to reduce the carbon footprint of the community include the work being done through the Integrated Mobility Plan to support sustainable transportation options, the development of an Electric Mobility Strategy in partnership with BurlingtonGreen, expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure and developing a plan for additional solar installations on city property.
Links and Resources:
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*Posted by John Bkila, Mayor’s Media and Digital Communications Specialist
