The Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) is in the process of developing a Climate Action Plan for the six Electoral Areas. The Plan will lay out how we can reduce emissions and increase resilience both in the region and in our corporate operations.
We are experiencing changes in our climate including more extreme wildfires, flooding, hotter summers, and poor air quality from wildfire smoke. These events have a direct impact on the health of residents, including the direct threat of rising temperatures, increased exposure to poor air quality, and challenges to mental, emotional and community health. Further, these impacts are projected to increase over time.
Reducing emissions, or climate mitigation, includes any actions that work to reduce or prevent the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) and is an important part of responding to climate change. The more we reduce total GHG emissions in the short term, the less intense these changes will be over time and the less costly our response needs to be than if we delay action. However, even if we significantly reduced GHG emissions overnight, the effects of climate change would continue to be felt by future generations for a long time to come. That’s why the Plan also focuses on increasing resilience, or climate adaptation measures, which will help us adjust to impacts already felt in our region and reduce our vulnerability to the harmful effects of climate change.
The Plan will set targets to reduce community and corporate greenhouse gas emissions, identify actions in key areas that will set out how the RDEK will help meet these targets and identify actions to help the community become more resilient to changes in our climate. It will also provide guidance on the expenditure of the RDEK’s Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP) funds. These funds are provided to local governments in British Columbia to help achieve provincial climate goals outlined in the CleanBC Roadmap to 2030 and the Climate Preparedness and Adaptation Strategy.
Pinna Sustainability has been hired as a consultant to develop the Plan, under the guidance of Project Manager Rodrigo Baston. Pinna Sustainability has extensive experience in the local government sector, helping clients define and implement sustainability, climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies both within local government operations and also at the community-wide scale.
Funding for this project has been provided in part by Fortis BC’s Climate Action Partners Program. We are grateful for their financial support.
Climate Action Plan Public Survey
If you live in, own property, or have a business in one of our electoral areas, we want your feedback here.
We have an opportunity to collectively reduce our contribution to the emissions that are causing these changes, and to become a more resilient region. The RDEK Climate Action Plan will look at how we can conserve energy, reduce emissions, and better prepare for – and adapt to – climate change in our six electoral areas. Incorporated municipalities within the RDEK, including the City of Fernie, are not within the scope of this Plan.
