City of Brantford makes strides on Climate Action in 2023

BRANTFORD, ON – On Tuesday, December 19, Brantford City Council received a report highlighting the significant strides made in 2023 in climate action, both on a corporate level and as a community.

This past year, the City of Brantford implemented a number of action items from the Corporate Climate Change Action Plan including:

• Purchasing four electric vehicles.
• Introducing an updated City Tree Protection By-law which governs the planting, maintenance, and safeguarding of trees situated on City-owned and managed properties. The updated City Tree Protection Tree By-law came into effect on May 1, 2023.
• Implementing an anti-idling guideline that limits City vehicles from idling to a certain length of time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Converting a total of 1,092 streetlights in Brantford to energy efficient LED lights.
• Launching the Green Bin program in November which diverts organic waste from the Mohawk Street landfill, lowers greenhouse gas emissions, and contributes to a more sustainable future.

Additionally, the City implemented a number of action items from the Community Climate Change Action Plan including:

• Partnering with the Chamber of Commerce Brantford-Brant to create an online Sustainable Business Support Office to share resources and information on how businesses can reduce their emissions and improve sustainability.
• Developing a Climate Change Communication Strategy to educate residents on the impacts of climate change and how they can reduce their carbon emissions at home.
• Launching Brantford.ca/ClimateActionAtHome which includes information on home retrofits, tips for making homes resilient to climate change, and links to resources and available incentives.

“Over the past year, the City of Brantford has made significant progress in reducing our carbon footprint and moving toward a carbon neutral future,” says Brantford Mayor Kevin Davis. “We encourage residents to implement small changes at home and join us in our goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.”

In September, the City of Brantford also achieved Milestone 4 of the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) Network for its work on implementing action items outlined in the Corporate and Community Climate Change Action Plans. The PCP program, from ICLEI Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, identifies and celebrates the work that municipalities are undertaking to reduce their carbon footprints and promote environmental sustainability on a corporate and community level. The PCP program is a five milestone framework to help municipalities create and implement a climate change action plan to help lower greenhouse gas emissions. For more information about the PCP Network and the Five Milestone Framework, visit www.pcp-ppc.ca. 

The City of Brantford continues to be a leader in climate action advocacy and implementation. On November 2, 2023, the City was invited to be part of a panel discussion at the Ontario Water Works Association and Water Environment Association of Ontario Conference. Staff presented on the implementation of the Climate Lens Tool and Climate Change Action Plans. The City was also invited to present at the Clean Air Council Workshop on December 8, 2023 on the expansion and continued use of the Climate Lens Tool.

In 2019, the City of Brantford Council declared a Climate Emergency stating that Canada has disproportionately contributed to the climate and ecological crises, and that emergency mobilization on an unprecedented scale will be required. In 2020, City Council adopted the Corporate Climate Change Action Plan and the Community Climate Change Action Plan and has begun to implement action items outlined within each.

To learn more about the City’s Climate Action initiatives, visit Brantford.ca/ClimateAction.

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Media Contact:

Chelsey Tobin | Communications Specialist, Communications and Community Engagement
City of Brantford | 519-759-4150 ext. 5048 | ctobin@brantford.ca