To the editor,
Re: City council calls climate emergency, May 2.
We are very pleased to see city council addressing our climate and environment decay by passing their motion recognizing that we are in a climate crisis at this time. Now Nanaimo has an opportunity to become among the leading group of urban centres that are initiating changes to demonstrate a serious commitment in this area.
Surveys of residents, town-hall type meetings and employers surveying their employees on what changes are needed would be some strategies to broaden the discussion and commitment.
The city could also take a number of steps to start the momentum; steps such as: requiring all new buildings to be energy-neutral; banning all single-use plastic and styrofoam, beginning with styrofoam trays; divesting all city investments from fossil fuel portfolios; encouraging people to divert their down spouts, collect rain water, etc.; identifying high-risk areas for flooding and addressing this in these areas; investing in renewable energy sources to meet the city’s energy needs; and implementing a number of strategies to reduce gasoline and diesel-driven automobile use including banning drive-thrus.
We look forward to learning about the initiatives city council will take in the near future to follow up with their commitment to addressing climate decay.
David Lemire, Alexis Petersen and Muir Meredith, Nanaimo
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