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Muskoka councils must take climate action

To the Editor,

Muskoka councillors and residents, we need climate action now!

In December 2009 The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) published  Act Locally: The Municipal Role in Fighting Climate Change.

“Municipalities can play a key role in helping Canada meet commitments for both significant and long-term greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions.” The report stated.

It goes on to say “Municipal governments currently have direct or indirect control over approximately 44 per cent of GHG emissions in Canada.”

The report tells of the opportunities to regulate, implement local projects, facilitate, partner and educate at a local level.

The cost of many of these actions is minimal and in many cases revenue positive.

12 years later, the District and all our area municipalities are now members of FCM and have declared Climate Emergencies!

In November 2021, FCM released the document  Partners for Canada’s recovery Municipal solutions for Canada’s 44th Parliament

The report does not mince words. It states: “Canada is warming 2–3 times faster than the global average, and the world is getting closer to irreversible tipping points.” And “Municipalities influence more than half of Canada’s emissions.”

Local opportunities to act include: deep energy retrofits of public buildings, active transportation infrastructure, zero-emission vehicles, public-space charging stations, reduced reliance on natural gas for heating, building codes that drive down emissions, local resiliency and natural climate solutions.

The missing ingredient remains political will. The costs are minimal – often recoverable – and in the end much less than the cost of inaction.

Len Ring

Muskoka

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