Collingwood council may be providing a little boost to support climate action locally.
During Monday’s corporate and community services standing committee meeting, councillors voted in favour of giving $20,000 to the Collingwood Climate Action Team to supplement their $75,000 annual operating budget.
“CCAT is one of the primary climate change groups in the community and have formed a network of local and regional partnerships with like-minded organizations and businesses to help accelerate change,” said Nicole Yardy, the town’s climate change specialist. “(They) have committed to working collaboratively with the Town of Collingwood staff to become a reliable partner.”
The Collingwood Climate Action Team (CCAT) was established in 2019 and is a local charitable organization with the mission of working with the local community to reduce the carbon footprint. The team consists of six working groups focused on food and agriculture, energy, transportation, consumption and waste, community engagement and carbon conversations.
Most recently, the group promoted the Community Carbon Footprint Challenge in partnership with Project Neutral.
The team’s total 2022 operating budget expects expenses to come in at $75,000, which will cover the annual Project Neutral fee, municipal and provincial research, website, media, print and marketing fees, the costs of grant writing and the cost of a part-time paid support person.
CCAT has said they will be actively seeking additional funds through sponsorships, donations, foundations, and grants through their newly appointed charitable status to make up the $55,000 difference.
In exchange for the funding, CCAT would be committing to provide a one-year update to council and staff on what they have accomplished with the funds and will provide staff with data collected from the Carbon Footprint Challenge to inform the Community Climate Change Action Plan.
If approved by council, the $20,000 would come from the town’s Greening Legacy Reserve, which was established in 2021 using $1 million of the proceeds from the sales of COLLUS and the Collingwood Regional Airport. The reserve is intended to fund environmental initiatives.
During Monday’s meeting, the town's treasurer, Monica Quinlan, said the reserve had increased by $6,000 since 2021 due to accrued interest.
The Town of Collingwood officially declared a climate crisis in October 2019, and approved the hiring of a climate change specialist to develop the Community Climate Change Action Plan.
On Monday, Acting Mayor Keith Hull lent his voice in support of the request.
“It’s a significant investment, potentially. It has to be proven. We’ve made a statement of climate emergency. We’ve made a statement by creating this legacy fund. At the same time, when it comes to driving this message on an ongoing basis, we don’t quite have the resources,” said Hull.
“The resources they are bringing in are second to none. This will continue to bring the message forward,” he added.
Coun. Chris Carrier spoke against the request.
“When I read the report I didn’t see the need to justify this $20,000 request outside of the budget,” said Carrier. “I was looking for something that maybe had been identified, or that the $20,000 would be used to mitigate something locally as a result of climate impact.”
“I’m a no on this. I won’t support a request outside of the normal budget process. I see no immediate need for it,” he said.
Coun. Bob Madigan agreed with Hull.
“Collingwood isn’t going to fix climate change, but if we could get every other community to do this, it’s a start,” said Madigan.
At the end of the discussion, the committee voted 4-1 in favour of the recommendation, with Carrier opposed. The decision will need to be ratified at the next regular meeting of council before going into effect.
