Get Informed

We write to you as the co-chairs of the Georgian Bluffs Climate Action Team (GBCAT). GBCAT has been active since 2019, supporting, among other things: the creation and adoption of Committed to Change, Georgian Bluffs’ Corporate
Climate Action Plan, adopted by Council in November 2023; the Georgian Bluffs Fleet Electrification Planner, adopted by Council in October 2024; the Youth Climate Action Conference held each year in the Bayshore Community Centre;
and the Repair Café, held once a month at the Owen Sound & North Grey Union Public Library.

We look forward to the next Council of Georgian Bluffs building on the good work on climate action that has been done by the last two Councils. To facilitate that, we’re asking all candidates for Council, as well as the Mayor and Deputy Mayor, to declare their positions on three potential future municipal policies that build on the good work already done. We plan to compile all the candidates’ positions on these policies and report them in a summary article in The Owen Sound Current, to be published on or before October 14.

 

The Policies

1. Implement an annual progress report to Council by the Climate Action Specialist on the implementation of Committed to Change. More in Appendix A to this letter.

2. Formally adopt a “Mitigation Through Electrification”plan. More in Appendix B to this letter.

3. Adopt a “Climate Adaptation”plan based on approved methodology. More in Appendix C to this letter

 

Georgian Bluffs Climate Action

Team

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How to Express Your Position on these Policies for Publication in The Owen Sound Current:
Please respond to us by email by September 25 about these proposed policies.

 

The simplest response to each policy is “Support” or “Don’t Support”. We’d also welcome your comments on each policy to a maximum of 100 words per policy.

 

We will publish all such comments.

 

Sincerely,

 

The Georgian Bluffs Climate Action Team
Danuta Valleau & Jenny Carver
Co-Chairs

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​SKIP TO THE CANDIDATE RESPONSES

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APPENDIX

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Appendix A– Implement an annual progress report to Council by the Climate Action Specialist on the implementation of Committed to Change. While there has been much progress in implementing Committed to Change since its unanimous adoption by Council in November 2023, there has not been a consistent process by which this progress is reported.

 

GBCAT proposes that there be a written annual progress report submitted to Council by, say, October 31 of each year. This report could be created by the Climate Action Specialist, for which there is currently a job posting, or by another
member of staff designated by Council or the CAO.

 

 

Appendix B – Formally Adopt a Mitigation Through Electrification Plan

The only way that Georgian Bluffs can meet the greenhouse gas emission reduction targets set in Committed to Change is by, over time, replacing its fossil- fueled machines, be they vehicles or building heating systems, with electric
machines. This will achieve emission reductions of well over 90% due to two factors: 1) the much higher energy conversion efficiency of electric machines, 3 or 4 times higher than that of their fossil-fueled equivalents; and 2) the much lower carbon contentof the energy from the Ontario electrical grid compared to that of gasoline, diesel or natural gas.

This policy can’t be fully implemented immediately for two reasons: 1) it would cost too much to replace all of Georgian Bluff’s fossil-fueled machines in a short period; and 2) while there are practical electric machines now available to
replace most of Georgian Bluffs’ fossil-fuelled machines, this is not the case for trucks Class 3 and above, of which there are now 12. It is reasonable to assume, however, that such trucks will become available to Georgian Bluffs before 2040, the year for which Committed to Change sets a target of a 70% reduction in Georgian Bluffs’ greenhouse gas emissions
compared to 2018. There are now Class 8 electric trucks competing successfully with diesel trucks in Europe, China and the US. EV battery costs have decreased by 90% over the past 15 years while battery performance has increased dramatically. Experts expect these trends to continue over the next 15 years.

Based on the above, GBCAT proposes that the new Council pass a resolution along these lines:

 

Whereas Georgian Bluffs Council unanimously adopted the Georgian Bluffs corporate climate action plan, Committed to Change, on November 8, 2023, and

 

Whereas the targets for greenhouse gas emissions reduction in Committed to Change are a 40% reduction compared to 2018 by 2030, a 70% reduction by 2040 and an 80% reduction by 2050, and

 

Whereas the two biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions from Georgian Bluffs'; corporate operations are its fleet of vehicles and the heating systems of its buildings, together comprising 87% of emissions in 2018 and a similar fraction today, and

Whereas the electrification of the vehicle fleet and the building heating systems can, over time, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by well over 90%. thereby achieving the emissions reduction targets in Committed to
Change, now, therefore, be it  Resolved that Georgian Bluffs implement a long term electrification plan for its vehicle fleet and building heating systems whereby, when a fossil- fuelled vehicle or heating system reaches its end of life it will be replaced by its electric equivalent, provided that the electric equivalent can do an equal or better job in operations and that its lifetime Total Cost of Ownership is equal to or lower than that of the fossil-fuelled machine.

 

 

Appendix C: Adopt a Climate Adaptation Plan based on Approved Methodology
Talking points supporting the case for climate adaptation planning:

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• The annual Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reports demonstrate that payouts due to extreme weather (“catastrophic events”) have been doubling every eight years since the early 1980s.
   

 

• The former CEO and President of IBC stated in 2021, “For every dollar paid in insurance claims for damaged homes and businesses, Canadian governments pay six times that amount to repair public infrastructure.”

 

•  The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) and the Government of Canada state, “…every dollar spent on adaptation measures today saves up to $15, including both direct and indirect economy-wide benefits”.

 

• The Government of Canada released their national adaptation strategy in 2023.

 

• The City of Owen Sound released their Corporate climate adaptation plan in 2021.

 

• The Township of Huron-Kinloss released their Corporate and Community climate adaptation plans in 2019.

 

 

Talking points on adaptation planning for the Township of Georgian Bluffs:
 

• The existing CorCAP did not follow the adaptation strategy proposed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) – Building Adaptive and Resilient Communities (BARC).
   

• By not following the BARC methodology, the CorCAP does not identify any vulnerabilities or risks associated with township assets and infrastructures – neither built or natural.
   

• The City of Owen Sound developed their corporate adaptation plan following BARC guidelines and identified forty impact areas of vulnerability  to extreme weather, of which 3 were ranked as “High”, 21 ranked as“Medium” and 16 ranked as “Low”.
   

• The City of Owen Sound identified a further six areas, not owned by the City, but that would impact City services due to extreme weather.
   

• The City of Owen Sound identified five impacts that were deemed to be “High Risk”, and eleven that were deemed “Moderate Risk”.
   

• Our communities are more vulnerable and at risk than the assets owned and managed by the Township.
   

• The Township does not have a Community Climate Adaptation Plan (ComCAP).
   

• The Township of Huron-Kinloss identified for their community a total of 47 vulnerability impact areas, of which 19 were ranked as “High”,  20 ranked as “Medium”, and only 8 ranked as “Low”.
  
   

Government of Canada Adaptation Action Plan (GOCAAP 2024) Minister Steven Guilbeault

 

Every dollar spent on adaptation measures today saves up to $15, including both direct and indirect economy-wide benefits. The dividends from smart adaptation investment include reducing costly repairs or replacement of lost or damaged infrastructure, (p. iii)

(Adaptation)…means setting targets and making investments for:
• Stronger roads, bridges, sewers and other infrastructure
• Healthier people and communities
• Protecting nature and restoring biodiversity
• A more climate resilient economy and workers
• And better disaster preparedness (p. iii)

Executive Summary
The case for adapting to the changing climate is undeniable. The Canadian Climate Institute
estimates that by 2025 Canada will experience annual losses of $25 billion as a
result of climate change. This is equal to 50 per cent of projected 2025 Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) growth. (p. v).