Have your say in County’s Climate Action Plan before engagement closes on Monday

By Casandra Turnbull

The window to submit your thoughts on the county’s new Climate Action Plan (CAP) is closing on Monday.

Residents are invited to review the draft plan through EngageBrant and submit feedback before staff takes community input and rolls it into a final plan to be presented to

Council on November 26th .

The Climate Action Plan presents actions the county hopes will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support resiliency, and encourage environmental sustainability The Corporate Strategy Team worked with staff across all county departments since May 2024 to develop the draft plan that includes data analysis, research, staff expertise and feedback from the community.

Some key actions outlined in the CAP are developing sustainable and resilient standards for new county buildings, enhancing emissions data collection and reporting, increasing efforts for tree planting and preserving natural spaces.

Corporate emissions are calculated by evaluating key sources of emissions created by the County, including buildings, fleet, water and wastewater processing, and streetlights and traffic signals. The chart above shows an approximate breakdown of emissions from these sources in 2023.

In contrast, community emissions look at the County more broadly and focus on emissions from residential and non-residential buildings (energy use), transportation, and waste. The chart above shows an approximate breakdown of emissions from these sources in 2023.

All these initiatives stem from a 2019 council declaration that we are in a climate emergency, joining other municipalities across the country in highlighting the urgency to address climate change. Council set objectives of becoming net carbon neutral by 2050

The first phase is developing the Energy Conservation and Demand Management Plan, in line with provincial requirements, which will guide the county until 2029. In a staff prepared report, it was noted that since 2013, the county has seen a 19% decrease in GHG emissions from county owned and operated buildings and water and wastewater treatment facilities.

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