calgary

Climate change poses a significant risk to The City of Calgary and all Calgarians. Through the declaration of a Climate Emergency and the prioritization of Climate Resilience as one-of-three foundations of Council's Strategic Direction for 2023-2026, The City is addressing climate change as a strategic priority and Council is committed to action.

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The Council-approved Calgary Climate Strategy: Pathways to 2050 sets The City’s climate vision, guiding principles, goals and targets to achieve the outcomes of the Climate Emergency Declaration. The 2023-2026 Implementation Plan focuses on the corporate and community-based climate programs and actions to be taken over the next four years.

The Implementation Plan describes the prioritized actions and programs in 2023-2026 across service lines that will accelerate improving energy use, reducing climate risk and working towards net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 as outlined in the Calgary Climate Strategy. The implementation of climate actions also represents an immense opportunity for new industries, low carbon technology, jobs, local business growth, partnerships and the realization of equitable climate action and benefits for all Calgarians.

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The City cannot achieve Calgary’s climate goals alone. External community partners, organizations, businesses and industries are making significant commitments to climate action and are leading initiatives that contribute to Calgary’s greater climate goals. The attached actions (Appendix B), produced by external groups, are over and above the City’s Implementation Plan and are not part of the proposed budget. However, they demonstrate the impact of community-driven change and the criticality of collaboration to achieve Calgary’s climate goals.

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The Plan has been prioritized into six focus areas:

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    I. Communities

    II. Buildings

    III. Energy Supply

    VI. Mobility

    V. Natural Infrastructure

    VI. Education & Outreach

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Progress needs to be undertaken in each of these focus areas to set us on the path to achieving The City’s net zero target by 2050 and becoming a climate resilient city.

To achieve this, the total cross-corporate investment identified to fund the 2023-2026 Implementation Plan is approximately $3.8M in new base operating, $44.1M in one-time operating and $207.8M in capital to achieve all the actions within the Plan.

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This budget represents primary or direct climate investments for actions specific to accelerating GHG emissions reduction and/or climate risk reduction in City services and does not include secondary investments in actions specific to the provision of other City service outcomes that provide some climate benefit.

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Many of these primary investments take advantage of existing procurement opportunities, capital infrastructure projects, lifecycle upgrades, operations of City assets and policies and bylaws by applying a ‘climate lens’ on the provision of City services that make Calgary an affordable, safe and great place to live.

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Climate action will require sustained financial resources, and it will be crucial to leverage all avenues of funding to ensure that The City can provide Calgarians the resources and programs needed to meet our climate objectives. The City is exploring additional funding opportunities, financing, and partnership mechanisms to support implementation beyond tax-funded budgets.

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To ensure enhanced accountability and transparency of progress on the Implementation Plan’s actions and associated budget spend, climate reporting is being consolidated and integrated into three central City reporting documents: the Accountability Report, Annual Financial Report, and Climate Annual Report. Collectively, these reports help ensure The City is on track to achieving its climate goals (Appendix A).