KINGS COUNTY, NS, Sept. 17, 2020 /CNW/ - Canadians live in cleaner, healthier communities when municipalities develop innovative solutions to reduce pollution, improve energy efficiency, and find new uses for public infrastructure.
Even through the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) continue to make strategic investments through the Green Municipal Fund (GMF) to support more sustainable communities of all sizes. GMF is funded by the Government of Canada and delivered to municipalities by FCM.
Kody Blois, Member of Parliament for Kings–Hants, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, the Honourable Seamus O'Regan, Minister of Natural Resources, and the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change; and Bill Karsten, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, today announced over $540,000 for two new projects in Nova Scotia communities through GMF.
Kings County will study the feasibility of building a net-zero energy engineering and public works operations centre. The study will consider the needs of the vehicle fleet, related equipment and emergency power supply energy storage in the building redesign. If constructed, this building would be the first net-zero municipal operations building in the province and would serve as a demonstration project for other municipalities in the Atlantic region and in other rural settings.
The Regional Municipality of Windsor-West Hants will undertake a pilot project to reduce energy consumption at Windsor Elms Village, a not-for-profit long-term care home in West Hants. The pilot will implement a deep energy retrofit, including a lighting upgrade and changes to the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, which will improve the comfort of residents and the facility's resilience to climate change. If successful, the pilot is expected to reduce the facility's energy consumption by 55 percent and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent.
The pandemic has offered an opportunity to think about what really matters in our communities, engage in meaningful conversations about taking care of those around us, and reflect on the kind of future we want to build. Together, with our partners we will build a fairer and more resilient Canada that works for everyone.
Quotes
"Investing in innovative solutions to help residents live in cleaner, healthier communities is vital. The green projects in Kings County and Windsor-West Hants will not only aim to improve energy efficiency and minimize pollution, they will help communities develop new ways to be resilient to climate change, and protect the well-being of families."
Kody Blois, Member of Parliament for Kings–Hants, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
"We are investing in the green projects we need to grow our economy, save Canadians money, create jobs and achieve our climate goals."
The Honourable Seamus O'Regan, Minister of Natural Resources
"Municipalities are important partners in climate action. Their local solutions to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions will build upon the national work already underway to protect our environment, strengthen local economies, and create well-paying jobs in communities across the country."
The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change
"Local solutions—scaled up—deliver major national impact, like economic growth and the emission reductions Canada needs to meet its climate change goals. Whether it's through improved energy efficiency, fewer greenhouse gas emissions or stronger local infrastructure, local governments get the job done efficiently and cost-effectively because they connect solutions to local needs and local realities. Supported by our strong federal-municipal partnership, FCM's Green Municipal Fund helps municipalities do what they do best: deliver solutions that work."
Bill Karsten, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities
Quick facts
- The Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) are investing $544,450 in two projects in Nova Scotia through the Green Municipal Fund:
- Kings County: $44,450 for a feasibility study on building a net-zero operations centre
- Regional Municipality of Windsor-West Hants: $500,000 for a pilot project to improve energy efficiency and climate resiliency at a rural long-term care organization
- GMF is a $1 billion program, funded by the Government of Canada and delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
- Since 2000, GMF has helped bring over 1300 projects to life.
- GMF-funded projects have cut 2.6 million tonnes of GHG emissions – the equivalent of taking 594,000 cars off the road.
- GMF supports local innovation that can be replicated and scaled up across the country to tackle Canada's climate challenges.
- GMF has created over 10,700 jobs across the country.
- Through the Investing in Canada plan, the Government of Canada is investing more than $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and Canada's rural and northern communities.
- The Government of Canada has invested more than $799 million in 189 infrastructure projects across Nova Scotia under the Investing in Canada plan.
- To support Canadians and communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new stream has been added to the over $33-billion Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program to help fund pandemic-resilient infrastructure. Existing program streams have also been adapted to include more eligible project categories.
- The COVID-19 Resilience Stream will help other orders of governments whose finances have been significantly impacted by the pandemic by increasing the federal cost share for public infrastructure projects.
- The Canada Healthy Communities Initiative will provide up to $31 million in existing federal funding to support communities as they deploy innovative new ways to adapt spaces and services to respond to immediate and ongoing needs arising from COVID-19 over the next two years.
Related products
Backgrounder – Kings County project
Backgrounder – Regional Municipality of Windsor-West Hants project
Associated links
Green Municipal Fund
FCM Funding
Investing in COVID-19 Community Resilience
Investing in Canada plan – Building a Better Canada
Investing in Canada plan project map
Canada Healthy Communities Initiative
Federal infrastructure investments on Nova Scotia
Twitter: @INFC_eng
Web: Infrastructure Canada
SOURCE Infrastructure Canada
Chantalle Aubertin, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, 613-941-0660, [email protected]; FCM Media Relations, 613-907-6395, [email protected]; Infrastructure Canada, 613-960-9251, Toll free: 1-877-250-7154, Email: [email protected]
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