Planning our environmental future. Together.

Port Coquitlam adopted its first environmental strategic plan (EnviroPlan) on February 28, 2011.

The City had been working closely with the community since 2009 to develop the EnviroPlan, with the goal of ensuring that a healthy environment is part of the City’s overall strategy for a prosperous, livable and sustainable community.

About EnviroPlan

The City’s environmental mission, as described in the EnviroPlan, is: Port Coquitlam will show leadership in supporting a healthy environment.

Essentially, the EnviroPlan describes the “what” and “why” of the City’s environmental strategy. It outlines the role of the environment in future City decisions and actions. The goal is effective management of local environmental priorities, including corporate environmental impact.

Plan Development

During 2009 to 2010, ideas were collected through a number of open houses, stakeholder meetings, surveys, and staff workshops in order to develop a relevant environmental vision for the community. Throughout the consultation process, the plan was refined based on the input and feedback received.

Port Coquitlam’s EnviroPlan also considers current and future environmental trends, new legislation, best practices in environmental management from other municipalities, financial considerations, and coordination of City efforts with those of the public and other stakeholders.

Environmental Goals

Our EnviroPlan lays out six environmental goals that represent the City’s aspirations for the future:

• Goal 1 – Support sustainable food and agriculture.
• Goal 2 – Conserve water and protect the waterways within and around the community.
• Goal 3 – Reduce greenhouse gas emissions and work towards a net zero carbon community.
• Goal 4 – Preserve biodiversity and ecosystem health.
• Goal 5 – Create healthy, livable communities.
• Goal 6 – Use materials and resources sparingly and aim for maximum resource recovery of materials.

Strategic Directions

The core of Port Coquitlam’s EnviroPlan is a set of strategic directions that will describe in broad terms how the City will achieve its environmental goals.

These strategic directions have been organized into eight pillars:

• Live: land use and neighbourhood design
• Move: transportation system and mode choice
• Green: green space, wildlife habitat, outdoor recreation and food/agriculture
• Build: building performance standards including renewable energy and energy efficiency
• Flow: water conservation and rainwater management
• Reduce: materials and resource management
• Prosper: greening of business and the economy
• Manage: greening the City’s facilities and operations

Twelve “big ideas” have also been developed that explore some of the strategic directions in more detail, presenting some best practices and innovative ideas that can provide the catalyst for environmental change.

Implementation

The EnviroPlan includes strategies that can be integrated into the activities of multiple departments, as well as reflect the City’s role in supporting the work of external agencies and provincial, regional and federal governments.

An implementation plan provided by the consultant will serve as a planning tool, assisting the City in setting priorities and direction during the annual business plan and budget process.

The input gathered for the EnviroPlan has also been considered in the development of the City’s Corporate Strategic Plan, the document that guides all City actions and decisions.

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