Transition Brockville              

A number of cities across Canada have taken significant steps to reduce energy demand and emissions like running “Idle-Free” campaigns, establishing capture and waste diversion programs, converting to high-efficiency vehicle fleets, retrofitting municipal buildings, converting traffic lights to LEDs, and more. The list includes every major city in Canada including Ottawa and Montreal. As a result of their initiatives, they are now saving substantial amounts of taxpayers' money.

The provincial government is now close to approving Brockville's new Official Plan. The plan appears to have a strong bias toward community sustainability, but most of the "shall" requirements are hedged with the phrase "as opportunity and budget permits." With the effects of climate change bearing down on us, and evidence of conventional fossil fuel production having peaked in 2006, we need to ensure that sustainability is guiding factor in all municipal decisions.

Send a letter to Mayor David Henderson and your Councillors and let them know they have options that can not only help reduce our budgetary shortfall, but set us on a course for a sustainable future. Their email addresses can be found here.

Some available options and programs are described below.

• Economic Resilience

  A few of these things can be done alone or with a single family. But almost all of them need to be done at a community level, because that’s where ECONOMICS takes place: it all boils down to transactions between people.

• Renewable Energy Development: A Guide for Municipalities

  Municipalities are key partners in helping Ontario become a clean energy leader. The municipal role in renewable energy development can include participating as a developer, encouraging projects for economic development purposes, establishing renewable energy policies and targets, providing comments and input on project design via the consultation process, authorizing the use of municipal property, entering into agreements with developers and enacting by-laws affecting projects, or any combination of these roles.

• Climate Change Adaptation Planning: A Handbook for Small Canadian Communities

  The purpose of the Handbook is to help small Canadian communities to prepare and implement a Climate Change Adaptation Plan (CCAP). The Handbook focuses on small Canadian communities, as CIP has learned from its surveys and focus groups that there is a pressing need in these communities for assistance to address the impacts of climate change.

• Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation - Tools for Adaptation

  Adaptation tools include guidelines, methods and approaches to help people incorporate information about a changing climate in decision-making. The Division supported the review of existing decision-support tools in some sectors and the creation of several new ones. The tools are grouped in two categories, Risk Management Tools and Adaptation Planning Tools.

• Ontario Regional Adaptation Collaborative

  A three year program to help Canadians reduce the risks and maximize the opportunities posed by climate change. The Program is in place to help communities prepare for and adapt to local impacts posed by our changing climate, such as: decreasing fresh water supplies; increasing droughts, floods and coastal erosion; and changing forestry, fisheries and agricultural resources.

• Green Procurement Language in Municipal Code

  A bevy of resources from the Fostering Sustainable Behavior discussion forums

• Green Cities Report

  "This report is our effort to showcase and support the innovative ways in which cities are creating an equitable green economy. The report is based on conversations with the brightest thinkers in the field, and the findings from our survey of 40 of the country’s largest cities. “Green Cities” takes a step back to see what cities have accomplished, while also identifying areas in which their efforts have fallen short."

• Climate Protection Manual for Cities

  "This manual will show mayors how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in his/her unique community. This manual has gone through an extensive peer review process. And was released at the ICLEI Sundance Summit, for comment from the mayors and city officials assembled there."

• Ahead of the Storm

  This document has been prepared by the Toronto Environment Office in collaboration with the City’s Adaptation Steering Group with assistance from the Clean Air Partnership. The City recognizes that reducing greenhouse gases and preparing for climate change are both necessary. The focus of this document is on preparing for climate change.

• Alliance for Resilient Cities (ARC)

  The Alliance for Resilient Cities is a collaborative network of decision-makers that supports the efforts of local governments to identify the impacts of climate change, analyze adaptation options and develop action strategies to protect their communities.

• Federation of Canadian Municipalities

  The Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) program is a network of more than 135 Canadian municipal governments who have committed to reducing greenhouse gases and acting on climate change. PCP is the Canadian component of ICLEI's Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) network that comprises more
  then 600 communities world wide making the same efforts.

• Preparing local governments for energy and climate uncertainty

  The Post Carbon Cities program helps local governments understand the challenges posed by energy and climate uncertainty, and provides resources for elected officials, planners, managers and others to develop plans and responses appropriate to their communities.

• The Centre for Sustainable Community Development

  The FCM Centre for Sustainable Community Development offers financial services and resources to Canadian municipal governments to improve environmental performance and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

• The Natural Step Canada

  Part of an international non-profit research, education and advisory organization that uses a science-based, systems framework to help organizations, individuals and communities take meaningful steps toward sustainability.

• Adapting to Climate Change : An Introduction for Canadian Municipalities

  A tool that will help municipalities and communities develop a better understanding of adaptation. It represents a starting point for municipalities and communities that have not yet formally considered adaptation in their planning processes.

• Dynamic Cities Project

  The DCP is an enterprising non-profit organization that helps local communities adapt to unprecedented global challenges including oil depletion and climate change. The DCP conducts scenario-based research in collaboration with local professionals and governments, in order to develop practical tools that foster the growth of more resilient cities, towns, and neighbourhoods.

• SustainLane Government

  An open-source, searchable repository for information and network-building on sustainability issues including green building, energy / energy efficiency, climate change policy, local food systems, transportation, materials management and overall sustainability management.

• ICLEI Global: Local Governments for Sustainability

  Through its international campaigns and programs, ICLEI works with local governments to generate political awareness of key issues; establish plans of action toward defined, concrete, measurable targets; work toward meeting these targets through the implementation of projects; and evaluate local and cumulative progress toward sustainable development.

• The Relocalisation Network

  The main goals of Relocalization are to increase community energy security, to strengthen local economies, and to dramatically improve environmental conditions and social equity.

• Waste from Light Pollution

  There is no benefit from lighting up the sky. Depending on the specific type of street light fixture, as much as 25% of its light may be wasted.

• National Conversation on Climate Action

  Public concern over global warming has galvanized communities around the world to take action. This global challenge is being met with local leadership and a commitment from a range of stakeholders to finding creative solutions at the local level.

• Canadian Wind Energy Association: Best Practices

  This section provides best practice documents and studies that can be helpful for municipalities who have proposed projects in their area. A well-informed municipality means better informed citizens who are positioned to enjoy the benefits of wind energy.

Last modified 2011-12-08