For Immediate Release
May 26th, 2016
Mississauga Takes Ongoing Action to Address Climate Change: Mayor Crombie
Mississauga – The City of Mississauga continues to address the ongoing challenges caused by climate change with responsible, comprehensive and forward-looking solutions, Mayor Bonnie Crombie said today.
Mayor Crombie made the comments as she welcomed a staff report entitled – Climate Change Action Updates – which details a number of climate change related initiatives undertaken to improve energy efficiency, reduce pollution and enhance environmental stewardship. Mayor Crombie requested the report in January.
“Cities must take action to safeguard our environment because over 50% of the population now lives in urban areas,” Mayor Crombie said. The report highlights how “cities contribute 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions and, in Ontario, have control over land use and transportation – two major sources of emissions.”
The report details over 20 different short, medium and long-term key actions undertaken by different departments. Of note, accomplishments include:
- Expanded Transit – In 2015, MiWay avoided greenhouse gas emissions of approximately 55,000 tonnes – equivalent to taking 11,000 cars off the road.
- Street Light LED Conversion Program – Between 2014 and 2015, this reduced the City’s carbon footprint by 1,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2).
- LED lighting in Tomken Arena – This project saved almost 95,000 kilowatt hours. This project was also the first of its kind in Ontario.
- Greening Our Fleet – Increased the overall efficiency of the City’s fleet by right-sizing fleet vehicles and converting some to hybrids. This program avoided the City over $500,000 in fuel costs over the life of the program.
- One Million Trees – 208,313 trees have been planted to date. Trees help mitigate climate change by sequestering carbon dioxide from the air.
Mayor Crombie highlighted Council’s unanimous decision to move forward with a Stormwater Charge – allowing for new, unprecedented, and necessary investments in this essential infrastructure. The funds cannot be used for other services and programs as stated in the Stormwater Fees and Charges By-law.
“Changes to our climate can bring heavier rainfalls and rapidly melting snow,” Mayor Crombie said. “These changes mean more stormwater is entering our system than ever before, causing costly wear and tear on aging infrastructure,” Mayor Crombie added.
Mayor Crombie concluded “with the ongoing environmental policy developments emerging from the 2015 Paris Climate Conference – COP21, along with new efforts by the Wynne government to set up a cap-and-trade system, climate change will continue to be a significant priority for all levels of government over the coming years.”
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