Newmarket mayor questions pace of York Region's climate strategy

'It comes down to will,' mayor says, seeking more funding for climate change as the region readies to pass its plan five years in the making

Newmarkettoday.ca
Sept. 9, 2022
Joseph Quigley

York Region is about to pass a new climate action plan, but Newmarket Mayor John Taylor said it is not going far enough in the short term.

Regional council committee of the whole approved the plan today, Sept. 8, and a series of actions to address climate change over the next several years that include integrating climate change considerations into planning, responding to invasive species, benchmarking building energy performances and establishing corporate and community emission reduction targets.

York Region has already adopted a target of net-zero emissions by 2050, but Taylor said the new plan is not specific enough in highlighting targets on the way there.

“I’m worried our plan is more... back-end loaded,” he said. “If we achieve all of the important outcomes in 2030 or '40, that is, from a lot of expert opinions, a little bit too late.”

The plan dates back to a council resolution in 2017, with a draft plan circulated for public comment and review in March 2020. It lays out 20 actions to address and adapt to climate change in York Region. The region intends it to be a living document monitored annually.

“An agile approach will allow the region to fine-tune identified actions and add new ones to take advantage of opportunities, adapt to unexpected events and trends, and learn from other leading jurisdictions,” the plan said.

Emission targets are largely covered by a corporate energy plan that will track greenhouse gas reduction in increments. according to staff.

Public works commissioner Erin Mahoney said most of the net-zero target -- about 70 per cent -- is tied to the electrification of their vehicle fleet, which they hope to accelerate with upper-government funding.

“Our current plan is to do that within the first 20 years,” she said, adding funding from upper levels of government could advance that by a decade.

Other aspects of the plan include supporting a circular economy, encouraging more sustainable non-vehicle transportation and applying an equity lens to climate change action. The plan will still need confirmation from regional council at the end of the month.

Taylor said he hopes there can be some conversation early in the next term about putting more dollars aside to advance reduction targets more quickly.

“There’s a lot of good work here for sure, and there are areas I see that excite me. But I do believe our outer years are more ambitious than our more current years,” he said. “That, frankly, doesn’t come down to technology. It comes down to funding. It comes down to will.”