Establishing the right administrative structures will be important in achieving long term success in efforts to reduce municipal emissions, energy use, and sparking economic development.
A model climate leadership group might include the City Manager, the Chief Planner, the Chief Engineer, the Mayor, two Councillors, and several representatives from business, civic, and environmental groups.
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) has developed a process for climate action planning and implementation.
Partners for Climate Protection is run by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, and outlines a series of milestones by which municipalities can plan to reduce emissions. Over 25% of BC local governments have already signed up to the PCP program. The five milestones of the program are to:
Further information about PCP, and about the tools municipalities can use to reduce emissions, can be found at:
http://www.sustainablecommunities.fcm.ca/Capacity_Building/Energy/PCP/.
Setting targets for both corporate operations (operations of the local government) and across the community is a significant step in signalling direction and igniting action.
The targets for a specific local government are influenced by the aspirations of the population, the unique energy situation of the local government and jurisdiction, as well as the cost and economic development potential of actions.
Some examples of targets include:
Planning can take several forms. There are three specific types of plans that a community may wish to engage in.
There is no one right approach for every community. Each community is unique in its current situation, goals, resources, priorities, and interests. Depending on where a specific community is, one of the following four planning approaches may be appropriate.
| Plans | Integrated Community Sustainability Plan | Air Quality Management Plan | Greenhouse Gas Action Plan | Community Energy Plan |
| Typical Scope | Broadest scope. All elements of community sustainability. Can include energy. | All or priority emissions to air. Can include GHG's. Targets for air quality and plans to meet them. | Narrowest scope. Identification of GHG emissions, targets for reductions, plans to meet targets. May not encompass all energy considerations (ie electricity) | Energy use across the community, targets for future energy use and plans to get there. Not as broad as an ICSP, broader than a GHGAP. |
| Output | Provides a complete picture including the inter-relationships between elements | Provides a roadmap to cleaner air. Easy to link to health outcomes. | Provides a roadmap for addressing GHG emission, likely over multiple years. Can be a way to engage the community in energy and climate change. | Provides a full picture of energy in a community, links to other decision-areas such as land-use. Provides a roadmap for the most effective deployment of resources to reduce energy use and/or move to renewables. |
| Notes | Maintaining focus and momentum is key since the large scope could lead to "analysis paralysis" | Many local governments have completed AQMP's and refresh them regularly. | Required for PCP milestone. Potential for inefficient fuel-switching if not careful. | May meet PCP requirements. |