Burnaby has many wonderful natural spaces and conservation areas but must do more to ensure equitable access, protect biodiversity, and increase climate resilience and sustainability for everyone in Burnaby.
Create specific and measurable Climate Action targets for every 2 year period to ensure we can achieve net-zero emissions by 2050
Recognize the current meaningful but insufficient progress around Burnby’s Climate Emergency declaration
Ensure clear annual reporting on actions and progress towards city-wide carbon emissions reduction
In parallel, build a specific roadmap with annual targets to improve climate adaptation and resilience to ensure safety of our community
Work directly with local Indigenous Nations to ensure aligned partnership and building upon Indigenous knowledge for collective building of a resilient future
Ensure a minimum of 20% tree canopy coverage in every neighourhood by 2040 to reduce extreme heat impacts and noise pollution while increasing city-wide tree cover to 40% by 2050
This includes a large-scale tree-planting program every year for more trees on streets, in parks, and on other city land
Protect existing parks and conservation spaces while also creating new parks and green spaces in denser areas currently that are currently lacking sufficient access
Improve physical and mental health and well-being for local residents with better access to parks and natural spaces
Explicit protection for all conservation areas and natural areas including Burnaby Mountain, Deer Lake, Burnaby Lake and Fraser Foreshore with continual efforts to ensure biodiversity is retained
These natural spaces are essential infrastructure providing habitat, protecting biodiversity, reducing flooding, cooling neighbourhoods and connecting residents with nature
Create a Sustainable Transportation advisory committee focused on addressing challenges with Burnaby’s current transportation system for people walking, rolling and riding transit to move around the city
This committee would help ensure Burnaby is able to achieve the mode-share targets the city has committed to by making sustainable transportation options more accessible, efficient and safe for everyone
Restore Burnaby’s streams and creeks and natural spaces
Our streams and creeks are living ecosystems and important parts of Burnaby’s natural drainage system, vital for both biodiversity in our city
Focus on ecological outcomes, protecting what is important, restoring what has been degraded, reconnecting what has been fragmented and investing strategically where relatively small actions can produce significant environmental benefits
Empower residents as environmental stewards Government cannot protect Burnaby’s natural heritage alone.
We will expand opportunities for residents to become active stewards of their local environment.
Our approach is based on ecological outcomes: protect what is important, restore what has been degraded, reconnect what has been fragmented and invest strategically where relatively small actions can produce significant environmental benefits.
Adopt life-cycle GHG emissions accounting for new projects
Develop baselines standards for efficient buildings (recognizing both costs and emissions), ensuring a public benefit analysis is provided for projects desiring to not meet standards
Measure construction and embodied emissions of development approvals by city with aim of supporting efficient use/form/materials
Work to build a collective culture of keeping our city and public spaces free of litter with city supports, incentives, and programs
