Over the last number of years, we have seen first-hand the costly impacts of climate change, in addition to storm surges, windstorms, and other widespread power outages. There is no denying that changing weather patterns are affecting our community, infrastructure, homes, and natural spaces.
To put a direct cost on climate change, this past year we have spent millions of dollars addressing the impacts of climate change. This includes investing approximately $750,000 on addressing shoreline erosion at our Wastewater Treatment Plant, conducting a study on our Shoreline in Long Pond, and replacing our pool roof. Our residents have also noticed the impact, and we have responded to flooding situations and are currently engaged in a study on Flats Road as a result of landslides at Manuels River. These impacts are very real, and is taking away from taxpayer money that could otherwise be used for programs and services.
I will say, though, that the way we combat climate change, and the way we intend to do so in Budget 2023 is threefold. The first of which is mitigate and deal with the impacts of climate change. As previously noted, mitigating the impacts of climate change is incredibly costly, and we are feeling the impact of these costs in our budget planning.
Our second approach to handling climate change is building capacity. Over the past year, we have put a considerable amount of effort building our capacity to mitigate and adapt to climate change internally and externally. This Fall, we released Sustainable CBS which is a digital website campaign led by our economic development department and it provides many valuable resources for how we can all do our part to build a more resilient and sustainable community. We continue to work through initiatives within our Climate Change Adaptation Plan, which was released in 2020, ranging from recycling to tree planting, and I am confident we will continue to meet new and existing action items in 2023. Lastly, we are putting a climate lens on our new municipal plan, so that decisions with respect to land use planning will account for the realities of climate change. That is something I know we as a Town are looking forward to releasing hopefully within the next year.
The final pillar I’ll note in the Town’s approach to addressing climate change is pursue opportunities with respect to climate change. We have the most beautiful community in the Province and are a popular choice for divers, sailors, nature enthusiasts, hikers, the list could go on. Our predisposition to these assets has resulted in us protecting and exploring new opportunities for now and in the future. In addition, however, the Province and federal government have made clear signals with respect green economic development opportunities and we are prepared to leverage and build on these opportunities, perhaps even as early as next year.
Ultimately, our hope is to build a resilient community, and we are committed to providing residents an enhanced and secure quality of life, in a prosperous and ecologically sustainable community.
Until next time,
Josh Barrett
Councillor At-Large
Conception Bay South
I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. - Maya Angelou
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