Local Government Matters - Climate Change and Environment

http://www.localgovernmentmatters.ca/Lists/Banners/DispForm.aspx?ID=2

Climate Change and Environment

http://www.localgovernmentmatters.ca/PublishingImages/ClimateBanner.jpg, Protecting the Environment

Local governments haven’t lost sight of the climate emergency.

Climate action is a shared commitment with member jurisdictions, the Province, Canada, and our residents. Metro Vancouver is committed to becoming a carbon neutral region by 2050 and is accelerating actions to adapt to climate change and reduce GHG emissions.

As stewards of one quarter of the region’s land base, including 13,000 hectares of regional park land and 65,000 hectares of sensitive protected areas, Metro Vancouver is well positioned to protect greenspaces and enhance the natural ecological services that can help buffer our region from climate chance impacts such as floods.

Metro Vancouver and health officials recognize that spending time in nature is an effective way to reduce stress and support physical and mental well-being, and our parks are more popular than ever.

Through the Regional Parks Land Acquisition Strategy, Metro Vancouver aims to grow the regional parks system into a connected network of resilient parks and greenways. Co-investment with other orders of government is a key priority to enhance climate change resiliency and protect sensitive ecosystems from development pressure.

Adriane Carr, Chair, Metro Vancouver Climate Action Committee, speaks to regional climate action and carbon neutral commitments.

Climate 2050 Strategy

QuestionS

How will your party further support adaptation and mitigation of climate change impacts?

Through our economic recovery plan, StrongerBC, we have invested approximately $90 million to help BC prepare for and adapt to a changing climate. A re-elected BC NDP government will build on this investment. In addition to pledging continued support for our forests and watersheds, our platform commits to creating a new Recovery Investment Fund that will deliver about $3 billion a year – above and beyond our existing $23 billion in new capital commitments – over three years. The funding will be used to build new schools, hospitals, child care spaces – and also infrastructure that will help communities mitigate and adapt the effects of climate change. A re-elected BC NDP will ensure this work is well-coordinated and targeted by launching the Climate Adaptation Strategy.

Will your party commit to partnering with Metro Vancouver to expand and acquire regional park land?

Our platform does not specifically address partnering with Metro Vancouver to expand and acquire regional park land – that said, our platform does make an explicit commitment to expanding parks and protected areas as well as creating a watershed security strategy, which would be supported by a Watershed Security Fund to fund Indigenous, local, and regionally led clean water initiatives. The creation of new regional park land could potentially be a component of this strategy. A re-elected BC NDP government would be happy to sit down with Metro Vancouver to discuss your plans.

Will your party commit to establishing a greenhouse gas reduction program in alignment with the Metro 2050 climate change strategy and the targets as expressed in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report?

Yes. The Climate Change Accountability Act sets a target of lowering emissions 80 per cent below 2007 levels by 2050. A re-elected BC NDP Government will pass legislation requiring BC to become fully net-zero by 2050 – aligning the provincial target with the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report the Metro 2050 climate change strategy. To achieve that goal a re-elected BC NDP Government will strengthen and expand our CleanBC plan and invest in made-in-BC carbon capture technology – programs which are both well- aligned with Metro 2050 climate change strategy.