The Town of Collingwood announced this week it reached a milestone in its work toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions by establishing baseline emissions.
According to a news release, the Town of Collingwood emitted 3,323 tonnes of CO2 emissions from its corporate operations in 2019. Now that's measured, the plan is to reduce it.
The town is part of the Partners for Climate Protection program, which is a network of Canadian municipal governments that have committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions their corporate operations are producing. The overall program is manged by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, of which Collingwood is a member.
The program is split into five "milestones" with the first one requiring municipalities to create a baseline emissions inventory.
The next step is to set emissions reduction targets for 2030 and 2050.
"This is an important first step for our town to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our municipal buildings and operations," said Mayor Brian Saunderson in a news release from the town. "We now have a starting point and are committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and protecting our spectacular natural environment."
Greenhouse gases are generated mainly by burning fossil fuels for energy and by decomposing organic waste in landfills.
Milestones three through five of the Partners for Climate Protection program involve developing, implementing, and monitoring a location action plan and reporting results.
According to the town's news release, municipalities in the climate protection program reported more than 160 greenhouse-gas-reducing projects in 2018, which represented a reduction of more than 720,000 tonnes in annual greenhouse gas emissions.
