Residents weigh in on city’s climate change action plan

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This article was published 21/09/2022 (1082 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The City of Brandon says it has taken an important step toward its goal to address climate change and achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century.

Environmental co-ordinator Lindsay Hargreaves said the city has an important part to play in addressing climate change, and so do its citizens.

“Municipalities have influence and control over 50 per cent of emissions in Canada,” Hargreaves said during an open house at city hall Tuesday evening, adding public input will be important when it comes time for action. “There’s easier buy-in when we do go forward with something.”

Tuesday’s open house was part of that effort to gather public input as the city drafts a climate change action plan that will guide its environmental policies for the next 30 years; a five-phase plan to achieve the city’s commitment to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The plan, which will include targets and actions to achieve climate change mitigation and adaptation, is expected to be finalized between November and December.

It will be the first time Brandon’s climate plan has been updated since 2013, and the new plan will cover a much longer period than previous versions.

The open house gave residents a chance to learn more about the strategy and to provide their own input.

Forty people had reportedly attended within the first 30 minutes of the open house. Visitors toured a series of placards that outlined the city’s goals, provided background on climate change, and outlined some of the climate change impacts the city is expected to face. Those include more extreme storms, droughts and floods, longer heat waves and milder winters.

The city also outlined sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and potential solutions and actions.

Residents then had a chance to add their suggestions using sticky notes that they placed on the placards showing the actions the city could take.

Many of the suggestions centred on bicycling as alternative transportation.

“Support a car-share and bike-share program,” one person wrote.

“Get rid of parking on both sides of the street and put in a bike lane,” wrote another.

But there were also other diverse ideas, from planting more trees, to creating a food-waste prevention program, to planting crops on boulevards.

The Sun spoke to some residents who attended the open house, including Ingrid and Erik Been, who supported the city’s effort to develop a plan.

“We find it very important to have, for future generations, a sustainable plan in place,” Ingrid Been said.

The Beens suggested an improved recycling program that would allow residents to better separate materials themselves at home — glass from paper, for example — reducing the need and expense for separating them at a facility later.

“It’s so much easier, down the road, instead of building a facility to separate it again,” Been said.

Kelsey Nay said she attended the open house because she wanted to see what the city is doing to address climate change and how seriously it’s taking the issue. She was glad to see that the city plan intends to address the need to adapt to the effects of climate change, not just mitigate them.

“I’m glad that they did focus a little bit on adaptation and not just prevention, because we are kind of at a point where we need to be planning for adaptation,” Nay said. “We’ve hit certain critical points for climate change already, and I don’t think a lot of people necessarily still have their minds wrapped around it.”

The city needs to convince people to take climate change seriously, she said, and suggested it take education to corporate-sector decision-makers. She also advised the city expand the bike lane system.

“If you put something in, people are going to use it,” Nay said.

Those at the open house were asked to complete an online survey, something all citizens will have a chance to do until Oct. 9. Hargreaves said the city may also host pop-up sessions throughout the community to gather more input.

A consultant will review the public’s suggestions, identify themes and develop short-, medium- and long-term goals, Hargreaves explained. The final plan is expected to be complete at the end of this year or early in 2023.

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