Sixteen Local Climate Change Action Plans (LAPs) from the Association of Manitoba's Bilingual Municipalities (AMBM)

The Association of Manitoba's Bilingual Municipalities (AMBM) will coordinate the development of local climate change action plans (LAPs) for 16 Manitoban rural municipalities located near the Red River basin. Six of these municipalities are AMBM members; consequently the Economic Development Council for Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities (CDEM) will work with all participants to coordinate the 16 LAPs under the Rivers West master plan, “Vision 2030”. “Vision 2030” is a regional planning process that aims raise awareness among communities and municipalities along the Red River Corridor and organize them to address regional environmental issues. The 16 municipalities seeking a tool to help stimulate their sustainable economic development have common objectives: to formulate concrete solutions to mitigate the impact of flooding, which is becoming increasingly common as a result of climate change; to equip communities with road maps to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and, to identify green projects that will work in each community.The 16 municipalities have a combined population of just less than 74,000. With support from the province and the help of consultants, they will develop plans with the following components: the reduction of GHG emissions, land use and the E-Index, which is a detailed analysis of the level of infrastructure and of access to information and communications technologies. The municipalities, all members of the Partners for Climate Protection program, will first establish a corporate and community GHG emissions inventory, and identify GHG emissions reduction targets. Next, three consultations will be held in each municipality to identify the priorities for each community and projects to be implemented. Consultations will be held with municipal staff, councillors, local representatives and the general public. The LAPs will put forward actions that are appropriate to each community’s respective context; however, all will focus on the same issues, i.e. projects relating to issues of transportation, energy efficiency in buildings, waste management, and the mitigation of the impact of flooding and erosion. The choice of the most relevant actions and priorities will be based on several sustainable development criteria. Consulting with these communities will help them to improve their capacity to manage their own development, and ensure the economic and environmental sustainability of rural Manitoba. The combination of the LAP components and the partnership model can be used by other rural communities or minority groups in Canada to promote and stimulate green growth and a sustainable economy. (Project description from original funding application)