Commitments to Climate Action
Summerland is committed to climate action and has signed on to the
BC Climate Action Charter. Summerland created its first Climate Action Plan in March of 2011, employs a full-time staff person dedicated to advancing climate action initiatives, and dedicates 0.001% of annual operating expenses to greenhouse gas emissions reductions projects.
Summerland currently has two action plans that address emission reduction, these are the
Community Energy & Emissions Reduction Plan which was finalized in February 2020, and the
Corporate Energy & Emissions Management Plan in March 2021.
Summerland is also a member of the Community Energy Association (CEA).
Earth Day Canada-Mobilizing Municipalities Spokesperson for 2023
In 2023 Earth Day Canada recognized Summerland's long standing celebration of Earth Day.
Summerland has celebrated Earth Day since 2007, when members of the Summerland Environmental Science Group (SESG) coordinated a community tree-planting event along Centennial Trail. In 2010, the celebration became ‘Earth Week’ with the whole community engaged in a week-long set of events and activities.
The District has been a long-time supporter of these community-run events and in recognition, Earth Day Canada has named Summerland its 2023 spokesperson for the Mobilizing Municipalities Campaign, with Mayor Doug Holmes as the District representative.
“The role of spokesperson is to encourage other Canadian municipalities to support their community Earth Day events the way we do,” shares Mayor Holmes. “Through the efforts of local volunteers, community groups and local businesses, supported by the Municipality, Earth Week continues to be a grassroots celebration that brings people together to make Summerland a better place.”
On April 22 2023 Mayor Doug Holmes and an Earth Day Canada rep conducted a ceremonial tree planting at Memorial park to both recognize Summerland's role as the 2023 Mobilizing Municipalities Spokesperson, and to kick off the 2023 Summerland Earth Day celebrations.
The video below was created for the Mobilizing Municipalities 2023 campaign, and highlights Summerland's support for celebration Earth Day in and with the community.
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The Partners for Climate Change Protection (PCP)
The PCP program is a network of over 450 municipalities committed to taking action on climate change. Through our membership with the program, we have access to resources such as tools, guides and networking events to help us reduce local greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at the corporate and community level.
As part of our commitment with the program, we are progressing through the five-step PCP Milestone Framework. The five milestones are:
• Milestone 1: Creating a baseline emissions inventory
• Milestone 2: Setting an emissions reduction target
• Milestone 3: Developing a local climate action plan
• Milestone 4: Implementing a local climate action plan
• Milestone 5: Monitoring and reporting results
We’ve made great progress in our fight against climate change since joining the program. In 2020 the Community Energy and Emission Reduction Plan (CEERP) and in 2021 the Corporate Energy and Emission Management Plan (CEEMP) was approved. Our municipal council approved the following targets in GHG reductions:
Short-term target: 18% by 2025 (community target), and 25% by 2025 (corporate target)
Long-term target: 80% by 2050 (corporate and community target)
We’ve reached milestones 1 & 2 (2020), and 3 (2021).
Learn more about the PCP program here:
https://www.pcp-ppc.ca
PCP is a partnership between the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability. PCP receives financial support from the Government of Canada and ICLEI Canada.
Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP)
Climate action is a key provincial priority and local governments are key partners in helping to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and create complete, compact and energy-efficient communities.
The LGCAP is a replacement program announced in May 2022 following the dismantling of the CARIP program in 2021, which ran for over a decade. The LGCAP provides funding for local governments and Modern Treaty Nations to plan and implement climate action that will reduce emissions, create new opportunities for people in the clean economy and prepare communities for future climate impacts. As part of the program, recipients of funding will be required to report on their actions.
This program will:
- Provide flexible, long-term funding that meets urban and rural needs
- Enable community-specific action to reduce emissions and increase climate resilience
- Enable robust reporting to track results and help improve the program over time
- Enable knowledge sharing among local governments and Modern Treaty Nations to promote innovative climate action across the province
As part of the program requirements the District and all other local government of Modern Treaty Nation must post the attestation and survey for LGCAP. Please see the document linked below.
Climate Action Recognition Program
The District of Summerland has been awarded Level 3 recognition by the Green Communities Committee (GCC) Climate Action Recognition Program for undertaking significant climate action to reduce GHG emissions in the 2018 reporting year.
The Green Communities Committee (GCC) Climate Action Recognition Program was launched in 2012 to provide the GCC with an opportunity to review and publicly recognize the progress and achievements of each Climate Action Charter signatory.
Under the Program, Charter signatories who demonstrate progress on their Charter commitments are eligible to qualify for one of four levels of recognition:
Level 1: Demonstrating Progress on Charter Commitments
All local governments that demonstrate progress on fulfilling one or more of their Charter commitments will receive a letter from the GCC acknowledging their accomplishments.
Level 2: Measuring GHG Emissions
Local governments that achieve level 1, have completed a corporate carbon inventory for the reporting year and demonstrate that they are familiar with the Community Energy and Emissions Inventory for their community will receive a letter from the GCC acknowledging their accomplishments and a ‘Climate Action Community 2018’ logo, for use on websites, letter head and similar.
Level 3: Accelerating Progress on Charter Commitments
Local governments that achieve levels 1 and 2 and demonstrate significant climate action (corporately or community wide) to reduce GHG emissions in the reporting year will receive a ‘Climate Action Community – Accelerating Progress 2018’ logo, for use on websites, letter head and similar.
Level 4: Achievement of Carbon Neutrality
Local governments that achieve carbon neutrality in the reporting year will receive a letter from the GCC acknowledging their accomplishments and a ‘Climate Action Community – Carbon Neutral 2018’ logo, for use on websites, letter head and similar.
Billion Dollar Green Challenge
The District of Summerland has become the first Canadian governmental body to join the “Billion Dollar Green Challenge Network”.The Challenge encourages governmental agencies, universities, and other institutions across North America to invest a combined total of one billion dollars in self-managed “green revolving funds” that finance energy and resource efficiency improvements. Read more.
Blue Dot Movement Declaration
The District of Summerland has joined with over 158 municipal governments across Canada in endorsing the David Suzuki Foundation’s Blue Dot Movement Declaration. This declaration recognizes the right to a healthy environment, and affirms the District’s commitment to decision making that considers potential impacts to human health and to the environment. Council Declaration Blue Dot Movement to read the full declaration.