After 11 years of bringing you local reporting, the team behind the Vancouver Observer has moved on to Canada's National Observer. You can follow Vancouver culture reporting over there from now on. Thank you for all your support over the years!

British Columbians help move climate plan forward

Photo courtesy of B.C. Chamber of Commerce website

NEWS RELEASE from Ministry of Environment

VICTORIA - The initial results of B.C.'s Climate Leadership Plan survey are in, and 92% of participants agree that climate change is a serious issue.

As the leading climate action priority, almost half of the
respondents said the cost of climate change should be considered when
making important decisions.

Using clean transportation to move people and goods was identified as
the next important step in meeting the province's short-term emission
reduction targets.

Focusing on community design to minimize energy use and travel, and
include more low-carbon buildings was selected as a key priority in
meeting long-term climate action goals.

Building a strong economy where jobs are created and greenhouse gas
emissions are reduced was seen as important in meeting both short and
long term climate action goals.

The survey and accompanying discussion paper were designed to bring
forward British Columbians' ideas and values to help form a new
climate action plan. In addition to 5,973 completed surveys,
government also received over 200 detailed written submissions and
more than 300 template letters.

A draft of B.C.'s new Climate Leadership Plan - informed by public,
stakeholder and First Nations input, as well as recommendations from
the Climate Leadership Team - will be released in December for public
comment.

The Province will release the final Climate Leadership Plan in the
spring of 2016.

Mary Polak, Minister of Environment said,

"As we near the next round of public consultation, I am encouraged to
see the passion British Columbians have for increasing climate
actions to drive down emissions while supporting a growing economy.
We are now creating a draft plan with this public feedback and
recommendations from the Climate Leadership Team in mind. I look
forward to taking this draft to Paris, alongside Premier Clark, for
the COP 21 climate change conference in December."

Jordan Sturdy, Parliamentary Secretary for Energy Literacy and the
Environment added,

"British Columbians are playing a key role in the development of the
province's new Climate Leadership Plan. It is important to have the
public's input on the next phase of climate action in B.C. as this
plan will help shape how we live, travel and work for decades to
come. I encourage everyone to learn more about the public engagement
process coming up in December as we move toward a final Climate
Leadership Plan next spring."

Quick Facts:

* The Climate Leadership Plan discussion paper was downloaded 5,973
times during the first public consultation period (July 17 - Aug. 17,
2015).

* The Climate Leadership Plan website was accessed 14,119 times
during this same time.

Learn More:

For more information on the survey results, and the next round of
public consultation, visit: http://engage.gov.bc.ca/climateleadership

Connect with the Province of B.C. at: www.gov.bc.ca/connect

Read More:

More in News

Views from a refugee camp: Who gets into heaven?

I have just returned to Vancouver Island from Greek refugee camps where I met a Yazidi man named Jason who told me about his escape from ISIS in Iraq.   His story begins on a desert road where a...

Vancouver's bicycle sharing grows as 15 new stations installed

Mobi bicycle by Shaw Go in Vancouver. Photo by Christopher Porter from Flickr Creative Commons

International Women's Day Concert celebrates female musicians who turned tragedy into triumph

Every March 8, on International Women's Day, we hear about the achievements of brilliant, talented women around the world. But how often do we learn about the physical and mental disabilities or...
Speak up about this article on Facebook or Twitter. Do this by liking Vancouver Observer on Facebook or following us @Vanobserver on Twitter. We'd love to hear from you.