The city of St. John’s has joined thousands of municipalities across the world in joining the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy.
Mayor Danny Breen signed the document yesterday at city hall.
Committing to the covenant was part of promises made when the city officially declared a climate emergency last month.
By joining the group, the city has pledged to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions, increase access to sustainable energy, prepare for the impacts of climate change, and track and report on their objectives.
Breen says it helps council set out a plan for how to move forward. It sets out a method for council on how to evaluate the progress they’re making. He says it is one thing for them to implement policies, but now they’ll have a way to track and report on them.
Breen says we will be seeing some of the progress on this early in the new year when they introduce a draft of their sustainability plan.
In that document we will see the beginnings of what actions they plan to take. He notes that in the 2020 budget they have set aside $100,000 for climate change projects, so we will be seeing some action on the matter “very soon”.