Burlington Council Receives Climate Resilient Burlington Action Plan from Staff to Adapt to Warmer, Wetter & Wilder Weather

At our May 17 meeting, Burlington City Council received a staff report and draft on our Climate Resilient Burlington action plan to help us adapt to our warmer, wetter and wilder weather.Click the links below for the:

• Staff report: EICS-02-22 Climate Resilient Burlington - Staff Report
• Climate Resilient Burlington draft action plan - May 2022
• Supporting Documents and Appendices

MY TAKE:I thank our City staff that have worked on this extensive plan that is principle-based first and aligned with the federal level. I think the key to any climate action plan is that we can't do it alone -- we need partners, we need the community and actions here at the City, outlined in the report, that we can take. I look forward to seeing the next steps from staff.

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BACKGROUND:Climate Resilient Burlington (CRB): A Plan for Adapting to Our Warmer, Wetter and Wilder Weather is a climate adaptation plan identifying actions to manage the highest projected risks of warmer, wetter and wilder weather (Appendix A).While CRB considered Burlington’s climate projections to the years 2051-2080 under a high emissions scenario, the plan outlines actions to focus on for the next 10 years to build resilience and prepare for a changing climate.The plan was developed using a bottom-up approach. As such, extensive engagement with 49 City staff and community stakeholders representing 12 City departments and 17 community organizations took place through 15 workshops between September 2021 and January 2022 as well as additional follow-up. The community was also engaged through a dedicated CRB page on the Get Involved Burlington portal.The CRB plan includes 32 actions under five themes, with each theme having one to three-related action groups. The 10 action groups each include a goal as well as indicators and targets for monitoring and reporting.

• Theme 1: Resilient Built and Natural Infrastructure - three goals and 13 actions relate to infrastructure design and lifecycle management, flood management, and service disruption.
• Theme 2: Thriving Natural Environment - two goals and five actions relate to tree management and natural area management.
• Theme 3: Health and Well-Being – one goal and five actions relate to extreme heat and health.
• Theme 4: Disaster Resilience – two goals and five actions relate to community capacity building, and citizen and business support programs.
• Theme 5: Strong and Resilient Economy – two goals and four actions relate to agriculture and local economy.