THUNDER BAY – As world leaders gather in Glasgow for the COP26 climate summit, Thunder Bay’s city council will consider signing on to a global climate pledge that could accelerate action on its net-zero emissions commitments.
A motion endorsed by the city’s EarthCare Advisory Committee to join the Cities Race to Zero campaign will be debated by councillors on Monday.
The United Nations-backed initiative is intended to inspire cities stay on track with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting average global warming to 1.5 C. It’s a target scientists say is essential to avoiding the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.
Joining Cities Race to Zero would commit the city to procure and test zero emissions buses by 2025, and develop a roadmap by 2030 to make all municipal buildings carbon neutral.
It would also commit the municipal government to collect information on the needs of “frontline communities” with respect to climate planning, with workers in transitioning industries, women, and refugees listed as examples.
Twelve Canadian cities have signed on so far, including Burlington, Guelph, Hamilton, and Toronto, according to the campaign’s website.
Thunder Bay has already committed to the overarching goals of the pledge: reaching net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, and a 55 per cent GHG reduction by 2030, compared to 2016 levels.
Those targets are included in the Net Zero Strategy unanimously endorsed by city council earlier this year.
Coun. Andrew Foulds, who sits on the EarthCare committee, is hoping his council colleagues will support the pledge on Monday.
The pledge to test electric buses by 2025 will help ensure the city reaches the Net Zero Strategy goal of fully converting the transit fleet to electric power by 2035, Foulds said.
“By 2025, I think with the number of municipalities across the country that are already, no pun intended, test-driving electric buses, I think that we’re going to have the kind of data [and] technology to be able to make that first step,” he said.
The Current River Ward councillor had expressed his disappointment earlier this year that a multi-year $25.5 million investment in the local transit system wouldn’t be used to wean the fleet off of fossil fuels.
Likewise, he believes the 2030 deadline for a net zero buildings roadmap would keep the city on track to meet its existing goal of making all municipal buildings carbon neutral by 2035.
“I think these are reasonable timelines – in fact, maybe they should be more ambitious,” he said.
Transportation and buildings are two of the largest contributors to local emissions, according to a GHG inventory done by the city.
“This would definitely accelerate some of our work,” said the city’s sustainability coordinator, Amy Coomes.
The motion doesn’t contradict any timelines in the Net Zero Plan, she said, but could push the city to move towards its goals more quickly.
With the federal election over, Coomes said cities will be looking to the government for increased support to reach climate goals. The Liberals committed to support the transition to zero emissions buses in their election platform.
While the country’s climate targets may be set in Ottawa, Foulds said reaching them will depend largely on cities. The Federation of Canadian Municipalities estimates municipalities have direct or indirect control over 44 per cent of Canada’s GHG emissions.
“It is the municipalities that I think deliver the horsepower to countries in terms of getting to net zero,” Foulds said.
He believes it will be important for leaders to continue pushing for action on the city’s ambitious climate targets.
“Government in general often gets criticized for developing very good plans, and then not implementing them,” he said. “I know the EarthCare Advisory Committee and myself as a councillor, we’re committed to operationalizing net zero.”
