Recently I was asked if I support targets for Guelph to address Greenhouse Gases produced locally. Here is my extensive answer.

Dear Constituents:

Thanks for the question: the short answer is “yes”. I will work with staff and the community to establish targets that are concrete, achievable, and progressive in nature that can address reducing greenhouse gases locally.

I will be honest, even with establishing targets as we have done in Canada, there is no assurance that Guelph can reach these. This is being realistic, not defeatist.

We can do something important to ensure we have both a community dialogue on the significance of local action and ensure that those voices lead to positive actions by the City.

Guelph can establish a Community Task Force on the Environment and Greenhouse Gases to address this. This could lead to citizen voices sharing with staff and elected officials ideas on how to approach GHG reduction. This Task Force could also be multifaceted addressing other issues too: waste reduction and elimination of packaging. Wastewater treatment and even groundwater issues related to Guelph’s capacity to grow all have an impact on GHG’s produced locally. Of course, this task force must consider the challenges of 100% renewable energy and address some of the shortcomings of net zero when paired with mandated population growth. Furthermore, I am thrilled that such a Task Force would have an educative role to play as well and should include input from our Boards of Education.

The capacity of the city to monitor all GHG “throughout the city” is extremely limited and must rely upon monitoring by other levels of government to accurately establish targets and revise them in a fairly frequent time frame. Further, we do not control natural gas usage in houses and businesses – it will be challenging to address this issue.

Currently, one of the real capacities of the City exists in urging via political advocacy both the provincial and the federal governments to act on these issues in a meaningful.

We don’t need promises or platitudes from any government including our local governments. We don’t need to throw up our hands and say it’s the responsibility of others. But let’s consider the GHG emissions from our “brand spanking new” natural gas electricity generators. This is one example of misguided public policy that will have a damaging impact on Guelph and upon which we have no control. How can we respond to this constructively and positively? Our answer in Guelph is to support local renewable energy production in Guelph including solar fields such as those proposed and rejected by the Council years ago. We can also work at promoting the installation of power walls and geothermal heating systems in homes and businesses which will assist with offsetting GHG’s produced elsewhere.

So the short answer is “yes” but the long answer is technical and complex. It also requires political will within the community to be active and monitor the City and Council to determine what is a true commitment and what is lip service. I would be one vote of 13. We need 7 votes to lead to a change in our current practices but I prefer 13 votes to unanimously get behind concrete actions that will have an impact on Guelph and environs beyond.

Phil Allt
Councillor Ward 3
City of Guelph
519-827-6579