Building the Climate Change Action Plan

December 2019

The City of Mississauga’s General Committee has endorsed the City’s first comprehensive Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP). The plan outlines the actions needed to tackle climate change both as a corporation and community over the next 10 years.

You can read the full news release.(External link)

• Siemens is committed to using technology and data as a tool to advance the common good and support informed infrastructure investment decision-making. More than 4,000 employees in Canada deliver solutions for sustainable energy, intelligent infrastructure, healthcare and manufacturing.
• According to the Siemens’ City Performance Tool, Mississauga could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 81 per cent by 2050. This is compared to its 1990 baseline by reducing passenger kilometers travelled by single occupancy vehicles, increasing the production of renewable electricity, and implementing a suite of infrastructure technologies aimed at the energy, building and transportation sectors.
• Effective implementation of the technologies could also result in more than 290,000 local jobs being created by 2050.

Siemens, in conjunction with the City of Mississauga, published Mississauga’s Climate Future: Technology Pathways to a Sustainable Future in 2050 identifying potential measures to achieve an 80 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 (80×50) relative to 1990 across all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions sectors. This analysis paves the way for the City to consider adopting 80×50 as a GHG emission reduction target as part of the upcoming Climate Change Action Plan. The City’s Climate Change Action Plan will provide a roadmap for Mississauga to mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

“Siemens analyzed the City’s infrastructure data through our City Performance Process using a data-driven tool that allows cities to make informed infrastructure decisions, through the lens of the sustainability goals. The analysis found that the City would need to transition to 100 per cent generation of renewable electricity and 62 per cent passenger travel by transit and active transportation to achieve its goals,” stated Martin Powell, Global Head of Urban Development for Siemens. “In addition to the current policies already in place, the implementation of 25 infrastructure technologies impacting energy, building and transportation sectors would also be necessary to achieve an emission’s reduction goal of 80 per cent by the year 2050.”

In addition to a greener grid, addressing improvements to the efficiency of heating demands in buildings also needs to be a priority. Currently, space and water heating consumes 83 per cent of the total energy usage in residential buildings and 58 per cent in commercial and municipal buildings in Mississauga. This provides a huge opportunity for emissions reduction, which has been addressed by modeling two solutions in the analysis – Combined Heat and Power (CHP) and air-sourced heat pumps. Together, these solutions have the potential to reduce GHG emissions by over 2.6 million metric tons or 38 per cent compared to a 2050 business-as-planned scenario.

The findings from the Technology Pathways to a Sustainable Future report are being used in the development of the City’s first comprehensive Climate Change Action Plan.

For a copy of the report click here.

About the Siemens City Performance Tool

Launched in 2015, Siemens’ City Performance Tool (CyPT) was developed with cities in mind, to help cities make informed infrastructure investment decisions, identifying which technologies from the transport, building, and energy sectors might be utilized in that specific city to accomplish goals such as mitigating that city’s greenhouse gas emissions, improving air quality, and adding new jobs to the local economy. Using a three-step process, Siemens works with cities to first build a GHG emissions baseline for its transport, buildings, and energy sectors, then chooses technologies to simulate on that baseline, and finally estimates economic and environmental impacts of investing in those technologies.

More than 45 cities worldwide have used the tool to inform their infrastructure investment decision-making including but not limited to: Aarhus, Denmark; Mexico City; Minneapolis; Nanjing, China; Vienna; San Francisco; Madrid; Los Angeles and Nuremberg.

In September 2017, the City kicked off its Climate Change Project and the development of the first comprehensive Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP) for Mississauga. Throughout the development of the CCAP, various engagement activities occurred to raise awareness about climate change and inform the Mississauga community about how the City plans on taking action. The engagement phase targeted the following key audiences:

• City staff
• Invited stakeholders
• Indigenous communities
• Members of Mississauga City Council
• Environmental Action Committee
  (EAC)
• Members of the Public

Since 2017, the City participated in over 60 events and engaged more than 10,000 residents.

Below are a few highlights from some of the education and outreach events:

Imagine 2050 Escape Room – in partnership with Escape from the 6, the
City explored non-traditional community engagement with an immersive,
interactive climate change themed escape room.

The After Dark Earth Market – attracting thousands of people, the City
partnered with Many Feathers to host a climate-themed market, engaging
residents on the topic of climate change and providing insights into the
City’s Climate Change Project.

Work of Wind: Air, Land, Sea – in partnership with the Blackwood Gallery
at the University of Toronto, Mississauga, a ten-day climate change themed
public art exhibit was showcased in the Southdown Industrial Area,
communicating climate change messaging through art.

• Mississauga Tackles Climate Change with City’s First Comprehensive Climate Change Action Plan(External link)
• You’re Invited! Have Your Say on the Draft Climate Change Action Plan(External link)
  (External link)
• Mississauga Prepares for the Impacts of a Changing Global Climate(External link)
• ‘City on the front line’: Mississauga creates climate plan to respond to extreme weather(External link)
• Here Is What The City Should Do About The Significant Increase In Gas Emissions(External link)
  (External link)

Related City plans and strategies

• Living Green Master Plan
• Mississauga Strategic Plan
• Mississauga Official Plan
• Mississauga Cycling Master Plan
• Natural Heritage and Urban Forestry Strategy
• Mississauga 5 Year Energy Conservation Plan 2014 – 2019
• Green Development Strategy

Reports and studies

• Insurance Bureau of Canada Study
• Mississauga’s Climate Future Using the City Performance Tool to Map Technology Pathways to a Sustainable Future in 2050 – Siemens Center of Urban Development

Resources

• Project glossary
• Corporate Green Building Standard Program

The CCAP is the City’s 10-year road map for tackling climate change. It’s the City’s first comprehensive climate change action plan. It sets out actions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and help the city adapt to a changing climate.

1. Reduce GHG emissions 80 per cent by 2050, with a long-term goal of becoming
   a net-zero community.
2. Increase resilience and the capacity of the city to withstand and respond to
   current and future climate events (e.g., extreme heat, flooding).

We plan to monitor our progress and release reports to the public each year. We
will also update our plan, including our GHG emissions targets, every five years.
You can follow our progress on Twitter @MiLivingGreen and Facebook
@SaugaGreen.

We plan to reach our goals through a number of actions that are outlined in the
plan. These actions are grouped into five categories (called “action pathways”):

1. Buildings and clean energy
2. Resilient and green infrastructure
3.  Accelerating discovery and innovation
4. Low emissions mobility
5.  Engagement and partnerships

Yes. Some examples include:

• Launched the One Million Trees program
• Installed solar panels at City facilities
• Purchased 10 second-generation hybrid buses
• Implemented a Stormwater Charge

Cities play an important role in tackling climate change. Cities are major
contributors to GHG emissions. For example, cities consume large amounts of
energy to heat and cool buildings, and use large quantities of gasoline or diesel
to fuel vehicles. At the same time, cities are already feeling the impacts of climate
change (e.g., more extreme weather events). It is therefore important for cities to
be prepared for these changes.

Funding for CCAP actions will be requested as part of the City’s annual Business Plan and Budget.

For the CCAP to be successful, we all have to work together! There will be many
opportunities for the public to engage with the City on climate change. You can also follow us on Twitter @MiLivingGreen and Facebook
@SaugaGreen.

• Eat a more plant-based diet
• Drive less and walk, cycle or take transit more
• Plant trees
• Grow local food
• Plant a rain garden
• Conserve more and waste less
• Hang your clothes to dry
• Replace light bulbs with energy efficient bulbs
• Purchase a programmable thermostat and turn down your thermostat at night
  and when you are not at home
•  Assemble a 72-hour emergency preparedness kit
• Install an electric heat pump