by hans peter meyer
Election paragraph:
This should be an election column; but it's not. Just one paragraph. In BC we get to vote every fourth May (I like that). I also like it that I can vote in advance polls (May 6-9th) or on May 12th. I like that I can help put an end to BC's political bi-polar disorder by voting for the Single Transferable Vote (BC-STV). And, I like it that climate change and ecological issues are part of the general discussion. I'd also like to see some leadership and innovation around our coastal forest industry as part of the election mix (who has read the report from the recent round table on the coastal industry?). For more info on BC-STV: www.BCreferendum2009.ca. To find our where you vote and to get on the voter list: www.elections.bc.ca. As for the forest industry report... I'll say more when I know more.
The real May 2009 Development Issues column:
"Ultimately, it's a dollars and cents kind of world." My source, a leader in the real estate industry had a twist on this world, especially when it comes to the buying and selling of homes. "Wouldn't it be terrible if, in say 40 years, the Comox Valley was having problems with ground water and people were losing property value because of a lack of assurance that there wasn't adequate water? Or, it was extremly expensive and people looked elsewhere to live just because it was too expensive...because of water[-related issues]? One can imagine a number of possibilities. Some of these will become unfortunate truths for those places that don't adjust. That don't ... put their overall settlement acivities into the context of a sustainability plan."
In this industry insider's view, the positive spin is that my town, the City of Courtenay, is showing as much leadership as any local government in BC. "In a very few years... a real estate agent will be saying, 'Our community has a very active Climate Change Action Mitigation plan. And by the way, this is giving us a better range of household choices, and we're doing a good job of protecting our open spaces, we know our watersheds are going to remain healthy' -- a whole range of things that a salesperson may want to say in a conversation with a client."
Frankly, I was a little surprised about Courtenay's leadership position. I guess I just don't give the folks on Cliffe Ave enough respect. Nor do I appreciate how the tireless efforts of stewardship groups have made an impact on decision-makers, civic staff, and electors. Things are changing quickly in my little burg, and I'm starting to feel proud of the fact.
I love trees (love to plant 'em, love to grow 'em, love to enjoy their shade and myriad living benefits, love to cut 'em down and make firewood and boards out of 'em too). I alsoplugged into lots of the climate change chatter. But it wasn't until I stopped by the City's Earth Day table that I heard about the "1000 Trees" initiative, one of my biggest reasons for feeling proud of my town.
The City, in partnership with a local nursery, will sponsor a discount on up to 3 trees per household. I'll have to make a trek to City Hall. I'll get my coupons and trundle off to the nursery for some fruit trees to put some food on my table, some shade and water conservation activity into in my urban footprint. All of it good stuff. All of it "responsible citizen" stuff.
The City isn't doing this to beautify my yard. It's part of their commitment to meeting green house gas (GHG) emission reduction targets they've taken on as signatories to the provincial Climate Action Charter. The goal is for local governments to become carbon neutral by 2012. Not a lot of time. Civic staff estimate that the "1000 trees" action will "offset two tonnes of carbon emissions each year for 80 years!"
Hats off to the City of Courtenay for helping me -- and others (about 700 tree coupons out so far...) -- with my postage stamp urban forest. But the City is earning my respect (and market advantage for real estate agents) for other climate change actions. The list includes:
- encouraging higher densities generally and moving ahead with raising building height (we now have a 7 storey option in some parts of town -- how I wish we'd had a couple of these mid-rises close to the store when I was in retail downtown);
- participating in three related current regional planning processes that will have a positive impact on all of us over the next 20-50 years (the Sustainability Planning process, Regional Growth Strategy, and the Regional Conservation Strategy);
- supporting the Learning Lunches offered by Convening for Action Vancouver Island (CAVI) , one of the best ways I've seen of getting inter-regional discussion and learning about new approaches to dealing with water and development issues;
- willingness to work with eNGOs like the Comox Valley Land Trust .
The tax dollars invested in the "1000 trees" is an example of local government money smarts: money spent today is paying down the cost of dealing with climate change in the long term. I hope to see the same kind of money smarts when it comes to investing in public transit over more roads and bridges. Our climate is changing. It's not a 'political' issue; it's a civic and fiscal responsibility issue.
I think I'll cycle down to City Hall right now to do my civic duty: get some tree coupons, imagine a bucolic, shady spot for picnics on the banks of el Rio de la Willemar that flows right by my door...
For more on the "1000 trees" initiative: www.city.courtenay.bc.ca/news/1000-trees-in-courtenay.aspx
For more on the Climate Action Charter: www.cd.gov.bc.ca/ministry/whatsnew/climate_action_charter_update.htm
For more on how local governments in BC are dealing with climate change, watch for new postings at the Communities in Transition Information Resource at www.communitytransition.blogspot.com .
©hanspetermeyer.ca / 2009
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