Resilient St. John’s climate plan

The City of St. John’s (population: 108,000) strives to be sustainable today and for future generations; this is a key direction and vision reflected in the city’s Strategic Plan (2019–2029). The community’s concerns about climate change, energy poverty, and the impacts of natural hazards have driven the city to pursue a climate plan that would inform an equitable path to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed “Resilient St. John’s climate plan” initiative aims to reduce the city’s greenhouse gas emissions and stabilize energy costs by supporting energy efficiency while integrating adaptation considerations. The climate plan will be developed using a stakeholder approach and a comprehensive geospatial energy flow model (mapping). This approach would allow St. John’s to estimate energy use and costs in the community at a neighbourhood level, as well as the potential for job creation under a future scenario. This information would then be used to develop an evidence-based, equitable and economically viable plan for the city to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with a strong focus on addressing equity and energy poverty. Innovative aspect(s): · This initiative is unique in its use of a geospatial modeling tool incorporating satellite imagery, energy use and municipal information to identify the environmental and economic potential for innovative technologies and policies · This project will be an example of how detailed planning can still take place in Canadian communities that are less data-rich, which is key in ensuring climate that plans have a clear economic perspective for their residents Replicability: Other municipalities across Canada can learn how communities, in the face of economic impacts from energy poverty and a global pandemic, can collaboratively address economic concerns while building resilience through climate action. (Project description from original funding application)