Town of East Gwillimbury declares a climate emergency

Council and staff will focus on developing climate action plan

Yorkregion.com
May 4, 2023
Simon Martin

East Gwillimbury joined hundreds of municipalities across the country in April by declaring a climate emergency.

“East Gwillimbury is committed to protecting the environment, and this declaration, unanimously passed by council, formalizes our concerns, and more importantly, the actions that council and staff will take to continue to address the global climate emergency,” Mayor Virginia Hackson said.

Future actions and decisions will build on the town's current environmental policies and initiatives. Currently, the town is gathering feedback to develop its Environmental Strategy. This strategy focuses on elements that affect, and are affected by, climate change: land, air, water, biodiversity, and the community. The next step is to define a Climate Action Plan, which will include adaptive actions to build resiliency at the corporate and community level. Later this year, the town will update its Community Energy Plan to promote the reduction of corporate greenhouse gas emissions and seek opportunities for such reductions within the community. Next, the town will update its Thinking Green Development Standards.

The public can join the conversation by participating in future environmental events, joining the environmental advisory committee, or by completing the online environmental strategy survey.

More importantly, everyone can help by taking small actions in their own day-to-day activities. This can be reducing waste production by making conscious decisions to reduce packaging and food waste, supporting energy consumption by carpooling, using alternative and public transportation, buying local, and repurposing, repairing, and/or sharing items. Every small action that we all take individually will have a huge impact globally.

This isn't the first time the town has asked to consider declaring a climate emergency. The matter was put on the back burner during the COVID-19 pandemic but members of council were ready to get going on the motion. “Let's get on with this. We have to move beyond talk and let's get into some action here,” Ward 3 Coun. Scott Crone said.

“Us not doing something is unacceptable,” Ward 2 Coun. Brian Johns said.

Ward 1 Coun. Loralea Carruthers said the environmental advisory committee has been working on getting the town to make a declaration for several years. But the effort was sort of put on hold during COVID-19. But Carruthers doesn't think the town can wait any longer. “By declaring a climate emergency, it puts it top of mind,” she said.

The town has already undertaken several initiatives to tackle environmental concerns. It partnered with the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority and installed low impact development rainwater harvesting features at the Nokiidaa Trail Parking Lot, the accessibility entrance and Green Courtyard at the civic centre, and new operations centre.

The town also installed retrofits to existing municipal facilities, including: high efficiency HVAC systems, low-flow hands-free plumbing fixtures, LED lighting technology and motion and occupancy sensors.

For more information, visit www.eastgwillimbury.ca/environment to learn more and to watch the full climate emergency declaration presentation.