Topic: Climate Action Planning

ClimateReadyBC

ClimateReadyBC is an online platform to help the public and communities:

  • Understand disaster and climate risks
  • Find funding and supports to make communities more resilient

The platform is a disaster and climate risk reduction tool for public and community use.

It’s also a hub for future collaboration and growth. ClimateReadyBC will evolve through engagement with First Nations, local governments, and other partners.

Deeper collaboration and open access to risk data will prepare them to respond to disasters and climate-related events.

The goal of ClimateReadyBC is to build a service that meets the needs of communities across British Columbia.

Sustainable Urban Landscapes: Site Design Manual for BC Communities

The Site Design Manual for BC Communities is rooted in several and extensive efforts to develop alternative development and engineering standards for the design of new (and for the retrofit of existing) communities in British Columbia. With the cooperation of citizens, government organizations, and related agencies, these efforts have been motivated by a shared belief that integrated processes and principles are crucial ingredients in the development of more sustainable communities and urban regions.

Secondary Indicators for Community Inventory Interpretation

This project was initiated to review and propose ‘secondary’ or influence indicators of progress related to energy and GHG emissions at the community level.

Specific objectives of the project are to: 
  • Identify practical indicators to support the CEEI sectors – land use, transportation, buildings, solid waste, and agriculture – to provide local and provincial government representatives with enhanced indicators for monitoring the effectiveness of local government policy changes;
  • Review currently used community-based indicators focused on energy and GHG emissions including those established for regional growth strategies and community energy plans, as well as identify suitable benchmarks appropriate to the local government in BC energy and GHG emissions reduction context; and
  • Define those indicators for which targets may be suitable and are also within the control or sphere of influence of local governments.

Resources From Waste: Integrated Resource Recovery

This guide to Integrated Resource Recovery (IRR) emerged from an independent report released by the Government of British Columbia in May 2008. That report, entitled Resources from Waste: Integrated Resource Management Study examined approaches local governments across British Columbia might consider in using solid and liquid waste to create energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, conserve water, and recover nutrients. This IRR Guide is intended for those who plan, design, and fund infrastructure – including water, wastewater, transportation, energy, and solid waste. Although it is technical in nature, it is also intended to be a resource for the broader community which uses this infrastructure.

Rainwater Harvesting in Greater Victoria

Rainwater harvesting is the practice of collecting rainwater for beneficial use. Usually this refers to collection of rainwater from a rooftop and storing it in tanks and cisterns for later use in or near the point of collection. The use of rain barrels is a simple form of rainwater harvesting, although larger storage systems are required to serve most uses.

Preparing Together for Climate Change

An Implementation Guide for Local Governments in British Columbia This guide focuses on ways to implement climate change adaptation strategies. This tool provides resources and information for local governments to learn more about understanding, preparing for, and adapting to climate change.

Plan2Adapt

Climate change impacts do not affect every region of British Columbia in the same way. The Plan2Adapt tool generates maps, plots, and data describing projected future climate conditions for regions throughout British Columbia.

About the Tool:

  • Assists users in assessing climate change in their region based on a standard set of climate model projections.
  • Is similar to the PCIC Climate Explorer (PCEX) and uses the same data to generate its output.

Passive Design Toolkit for Homes

The toolkit has been written to inform City staff and the design and development communities about passive design. While covering best practices, the toolkit addresses the specific needs of Vancouver and outlines a succinct definition of what ‘passive’ means for Vancouver. This toolkit can be used as a reference for best practices, and considered complementary to design guidelines and policy.

Making Progress on B.C.’s Climate Action Plan

British Columbia’s world-leading Climate Action Plan was launched in 2008 with aggressive greenhouse gas (GHG) targets of a 33% reduction from 2007 levels by 2020 and an 80% reduction by 2050. This report lets British Columbians know if the Climate Action Plan is on track. The indicators are very positive.

Provincial GHG’s fell 4.5% from 2007 to 2010 while at the same time, BC’s GDP growth outpaced the Canadian average, demonstrating that a strong carbon pricing policy that is revenue neutral can coexist with a growing economy. In fact the policy of taxing something undesirable (GHG  emissions) and reducing taxes on something desirable (income) is leading to innovative clean technology growth and changes in behaviour as both companies and individuals make choices based on the carbon pricing policy.