These are the two versions of the motion on Ottawa's Climate Change Master Plan that Coun. Hill brought to first the Environment and Climate Change Committee (Nov 21), then to City Council (Dec 6). For more about this motion, see here.
Version brought to the Environment and Climate Change Committee on Nov 21 (meeting minutes PDF here):
Motion NO ECCC 2023-08-02
Whereas climate resilience and mitigation are critical components of the Climate Change Master Plan;
And Whereas over the past five years Ottawa has seen over a dozen of extreme weather events, including spring flooding in West Carleton / Orleans in 2017, 2019, 2023, tornadoes in 2019 and 2023, a derecho in 2022, flash flooding in 2023 and a number of ice storms;
And Whereas the City has had to endure multiple days long outages during recent extreme weather events that have revealed limitations in current City resources that put our most vulnerable at risk;
And Whereas the municipality is responsible to prepare for and respond to extreme weather events, and as such, needs to ensure that appropriate investments are made to enhance resilience which will protect our community from the threats and vulnerabilities created by climate change;
And Whereas the City prepared a Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment (ACS2022-PIE-EDP-0019) and were subsequently directed to develop a Climate Resiliency Strategy to address these threats and vulnerabilities;
And Whereas staff will be coming forward in 2024 and identifying a number of operational and financial requirements to mitigate and adapt to climate-related pressures and deepen corporate and community resilience with respect to extreme heat, flooding, buildings, the urban forest and natural environment, drinking water security and extreme weather preparedness and response;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT as part of the implementation plan and funding associated with implementation of the Climate Resiliency Strategy, staff be directed to prioritize funds applied towards projects that implement either the Corporate Actions outlined in Section 4 ‘Mitigation’ of the Climate Change Master Plan or Section 5 ‘Adaptation and Resilience’ of the CCMP, with a focus on the corporation, it’s assets, and its subsidiaries;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff be directed to develop a prioritization framework to guide disbursements associated with capital fund 911372 (Climate Change Master Plan) including a focus on 1) flood resilience, 2) corporate building retrofits and energy conservation, 3) urban forest management 4) electrifying city owned vehicles, tools and equipment, including EV infrastructure, 5) extreme weather preparedness and response;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff bring back the prioritization framework for the Environment and Climate Change Committee’s review by Q3 2024 and that the framework emphasis projects that will i) directly impact corporate emissions, ii) prioritize actions that only the municipality can take, iii) can achieve results within the 2022-2026 term of council, and iv) have trackable key performance indicators
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT that future budget allocations to the Climate Change Master Plan include details on how funding will support the above mitigation and resiliency actions until the end of the 2022-2026 term of council.
Version brought to City Council on Dec 6, with changed areas in red (meeting minutes here):
Motion No.2023 - 28-xx
Moved by D. Hill
Seconded by M. Carr
WHEREAS climate resilience and mitigation are critical components of the Climate Change Master Plan; and
WHEREAS over the past five years Ottawa has seen over a dozen extreme weather events, including spring flooding in West Carleton / Orleans in 2017, 2019, 2023, tornadoes in 2019 and 2023, a derecho in 2022, flash flooding in 2023 and a number of ice storms; and
WHEREAS the City has had to endure multiple days long outages during recent extreme weather events that have revealed limitations in current City resources that put our most vulnerable at risk; and
WHEREAS the municipality is responsible to prepare for and respond to extreme weather events, and as such, needs to ensure that appropriate investments are made to enhance resilience which will protect our community from the threats and vulnerabilities created by climate change; and
WHEREAS the City prepared a Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment (ACS2022-PIE-EDP-0019) and were subsequently directed to develop a Climate Resiliency Strategy to address these threats and vulnerabilities; and
WHEREAS staff will be coming forward in 2024 and identifying a number of operational and financial requirements to mitigate and adapt to climate-related pressures and deepen corporate and community resilience with respect to extreme heat, flooding, buildings, the urban forest and natural environment, drinking water security and extreme weather preparedness and response;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT as part of the implementation plan and funding associated with implementation of the Climate Resiliency Strategy, staff be directed to fund projects that implement either the Corporate Actions outlined in Section 4 ‘Mitigation’ of the Climate Change Master Plan (CCMP) or Section 5 ‘Adaptation and Resilience’ of the CCMP, with a focus on the corporation, it’s assets, and its subsidiaries; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff be directed to develop a prioritization framework to guide disbursements associated with capital fund 911372 (Climate Change Master Plan) including a focus on 1) flood resilience, 2) corporate building retrofits and energy conservation, 3) urban forest management 4) electrifying city owned vehicles, tools and equipment, including EV infrastructure, 5) extreme weather preparedness and response; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff bring back the prioritization framework for the Environment and Climate Change Committee and Council’s review by Q3 2024 and that the framework emphasize projects that will i) directly impact corporate emissions, ii) be aligned with actions that the municipality can take, iii) advance the 2022-2026 term of council priorities, and iv) report back on key performance indicators through the normal reporting schedule; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT that future budget allocations to the Climate Change Master Plan include details on how funding will support the above mitigation and resiliency actions until the end of the 2022-2026 Term of Council.