Title
Accelerating Climate Action in the Township of Langley in Response to the Climate Emergency
Recommended Action
Whereas:
The Legislature of British Columbia and the House of Commons have acknowledged the growing urgency for further action based on current and predicted climate breakdown highlighted in the October 2018 "Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report" (IPCC);
The IPCC report underscored the need to limit global warming to
1.5 degrees celsius within a strategic framework designed to reduce global net CO2 emissions by between 94% and 107% below
2010 levels, in order to reach negative net emissions by 2050;
A recent "Canada's Changing Climate Report" (CCCR) has stated that on average, Canada is experiencing warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world;
The world is currently on track for more than 3 degrees celsius warming based on existing policies and practices that do not meet any current benchmarks or targets outlined provincially, federally, or internationally in order to stave off the most catastrophic results of accelerated warming;
The cost incurred by climate change will be greater the less action we proactively take to mitigate and adapt to it. Among other things, climate change will test our diking systems, aquifers, and storm water and sewer systems. Some of the costs associated with climate inaction would be:
1) An estimated $20+ billion in costs for the Lower Mainland to mitigate and rebuild affected areas subject to major coastal flooding,
2) Approximate cost of $2 million a year to switch completely to GVRD water based on local aquifer depletion,
3) Economic costs related to the maintenance and replacement of sewer and water infrastructure with respect to storm water and other engineered structures affected by climate change,
4) Human and economic costs from heat waves and wildfires,
5) Healthcare costs associated with increased respiratory-related illnesses due to diminished air quality,
6) Increasing cost of d...
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