Vernon city council hearing the recommended Climate Action Plan initiatives at its meeting Monday, March 11 (photo by Liam Verster/Vernon Matters Staff)

By Liam Verster

Provincially Funded Initiatives

Vernon’s Climate Action priorities get green light from council

Mar 12, 2024 | 2:11 PM

The City of Vernon will be proceeding with several priority goals outlined in its Climate Action Plan, thanks in part to some provincial funding.

At the regular meeting Monday, March 11, Vernon council was asked to approve using Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP) funds to proceed with eight goals within the city’s plan, though some did receive amendments.

The initiatives as originally presented were:

• Access a data analysis tool to forecast project-level greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction potentials to guide future decision making – $7,000
• Conduct a parks, green space, and wetland inventory for the Official Community Plan (OCP) update and the development of a natural asset inventory – $120,000
• Enhance GoByBike Week with additional contractor support, promotional materials, and community engagement initiatives – $50,000
• Top up for the e-mobility accelerator program technology demonstration to temporarily provide equitable e-scooter trails – $10,000
• Sponsor the Climate Action Ripple Effect (CARE) annual Youth Symposium and Community Expo – $20,000
• Sponsor two UBC Sustainability Scholars research projects, one involving how best to increase the uptake of community building energy retrofits, and the other involving a feasibility study of an equity based e-scooter program – $22,000
• Model the GHG emissions of future housing development with the 2024 Housing Needs Assessment – $40,000
• Conduct a GHG reduction feasibility study for energy retrofits to city-owned buildings, subject to a successful application to the Federation of Canadian Municipality’s (FCM) GHG Reduction Feasibility Study program – $40,000

Addressing Council Monday, Kevin McCarty, Vernon’s Climate Action Specialist, said funding these initiatives is recommended as they support the goals of the Climate Action Plan outlined in the Council Strategic Plan.

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“This is the first set for immediate implementation. Half of the initiatives, [items 3, 4, 5, and 6], include important community engagement opportunities. So that is GoByBike Week, the Electric Mobility Accelerator Program, the Climate Action Youth Symposium, and the UBC Sustainability Scholars research. They all provide opportunities to engage the community in climate action, which is critical at this stage,” McCarty explained.

“These four initiatives are also the most immediate and will likely be wrapped up by the end of the summer, so they’re the projects that we’ll be approaching first and wrapping up first out of the eight that are on the list here.

“The other initiatives — numbers 1, 2, 7 and 8 — they’ll build capacity and understanding to guide decision-making for upcoming climate actions for both city operations and in the community.”

McCarty added the eight projects “need actioning immediately” in order to meet project timelines and to gather key information for developing the next set of initiatives.

The LGCAP fund provides the city with annual installments of $205,000 that must be spent within three years. The city has already received two installments, totaling $410,000, the first of which must be spent by March 2025 or else be returned to the province, with a third expected in 2024.

It was noted that the LGCAPF money is in reserve, along with approximately $820,000 within the Climate Action Revolving Fund, so supporting these initiatives would not impact taxpayers.

Along with funding the eight initiatives, staff recommended the city apply for a grant of up to $200,000 through the Federation of Canadian Municipality’s GHG Reduction Feasibility Study program.

After receiving the report, Councillor Brian Guy made a motion to amend the recommendation with additional clauses, suggesting GoByBike Week be funded through the Transportation Department budget, the funding for the CARE program be given to School District 22 and not the contractor, and that “council directs administration to prepare a Climate Action Plan Community Engagement Strategy and Plan by maybe a couple of months away, say May 13, 2024.”

In discussing the proposed amendments, council heard that funding previously allocated for GoByBike Week through the Transportation Department budget was instead being used to fund the Transportation Management Plan and the e-scooter program, and that the purpose of the week aligns with climate goals.

It was also stated the CARE youth symposium and Community Expo is organized by the non-profit Fresh Outlook Foundation, though funding for the program had previously gone directly to SD22, so city staff would look into the matter and determine the best recipient for the funds.

Additionally, it was stated that completing a full community engagement strategy by Guy’s proposed timeline would require a lot of time and work by city staff, and instead suggested that a framework for the strategy be developed in time for the Climate Action Advisory Committee meeting at the end of May, in which the committee could provide further input into the plan.

Despite the discussions, council still voted unanimously with the original motions of allocating $309,000 of the province’s money to the initiatives, seeking additional FCM funds, and Guy’s amendments for funding GoByBike Week internally, providing the CARE support funding to SD22, and drafting a Climate Action Community Engagement Strategy.